Clark County lies entirely within the Till Plains ecoregion. The Mad River flows across the western 1/3 of the country from north to south, and the Little Miami River has its headwaters in the county. It is in the middle of the "spring valley" counties, characterized by many springs, seeps, bogs and fens. It has a large reservoir, and several smaller lakes.

Places to Visit

• Buck Creek State Park contains CJ Brown Reservoir, a large lake with many access points and parking. Restrooms available. Of particular interest for Odonata is the overflow spillway on the SW side of the reservoir. This is interesting habitat that is host to Paiute Dancer, Brown Spiketail, Sedge Sprite, and Clamp-tipped Emerald. 59 species have been observed in this park and its vicinity.

  • Old Reid Park and Kirby Preserve City is a 110 acre Springfield city park immediately SW of CJ Brown/Buck Creek. It contains multiple fishing ponds and provides access to both Buck Creek and Beaver Creek and their confluence. Odonate population is representative of typical pond species, usually in good populations. Convenient access and parking. Restrooms available.

  • Gallagher Fen Nature Preserve is one of Ohio’s best examples of a Prairie Fen. Located immediately SE of CJ Brown/Buck Creek at the end of a walk through the woods. Parking is off Old Columbus Rd. No restrooms. Stairs lead down the bluff to the Sinking Creek floodplain (Sinking Cr is a tributary of Beaver Creek). There is a boardwalk around the western fen area. Special Ode species include Brown Spiketail and Seepage Dancer.

  • Prairie Rd. Fen Nature Preserve immediately NE of CJ Brown/Buck Creek is a beautiful prairie fen with boardwalk. Access is by permit only.

• Leadingham Prairie Preserve, Spangler Nature Preserve, Estel Wenrick Wetland, and Medway Town Park These adjoined locations have a variety of habitats including wetland, stream, Mad River, wet prairie. All of which support a diverse Odonata population with 48 species recorded. Parking is available in off-road lots for Leadingham off Spangler Rd, Wenrick off Union Rd, and Medway on the SE corner of Sycamore and E Main. No restrooms. 

• First Christian Church - Seasonal Pond at OH-334 and Middle Urbana Rd (3638 Middle Urbana Road Springfield, Ohio 45502). Depending on rainfall, the pond can be small or medium sized. Parking is available, but limited when church has services. There is a walking path, no restrooms. There are other wetland areas on the premises that are not accessible. Shallow water is mostly fishless, attracting Darners in spring. Also one of our most consistent sites for Variegated Meadowhawk. 

• George Rogers Clark Park 250 acre community park including Hosterman Lake, a spring-fed impoundment. It is a popular fishing and recreational lake. Parking, walking trails, and restrooms are available. Expect the usual pond species. In many years Hosterman has the first observed local damselflies.

• Clark Lake Wildlife Area is a 290 acre property most of which consists of a shallow lake. On a couple occasions, Clark Lake has had mass emergence of Enallagma, particularly Orange Bluet (E signatum). There are no facilities, but the lake is surrounded by parking areas.

County Observation Activity

This graph shows the total number of odonata observations for the county in blue, with the average for all Ohio counties in orange. The season is divided into 10 or 11 day segments by Month – basically early-month, mid-month, and late-month.