Mercer Wildlife Area: hunting and access
Mercer Wildlife Area is 323 acres on ODNR's hunting map in Mercer County, next to Montezuma, listed by ODNR as restricted to hunting by place, season or permit. Hunters checked 1,432 deer in Mercer County in 2025-26.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: ODNR's ODNR area open to hunting data, read 2026-10. Harvest: Division of Wildlife harvest reports, 2021-22 to 2025-26.
Land on ODNR's hunting mapOther state landMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landMercer Wildlife AreaCounty lineLakeHighway
| Size | 323 acres |
|---|---|
| County | Mercer County |
| Deer harvest unit | Mercer County |
| Hunting (ODNR) | Restricted |
| Kind (ODNR) | wildlife area |
| Managed by | the Division of Wildlife |
| Held by ODNR as | owned land |
| Nearest towns | Montezuma (next to it), Celina (3 mi) and Coldwater (3 mi) |
What are the rules on Mercer Wildlife Area?
ODNR's land layer lists hunting here as restricted: hunting is limited by place, season or permit, and the area's hunting map shows where.
ODNR's hunting map for the area shows the boundaries, parking and any no-hunting zones.
Deer bag limits in Ohio are set by county; the Division's 2026-27 season list points to the bag limit map.
How many deer are taken around Mercer Wildlife Area?
Mercer Wildlife Area lies in Mercer County. Hunters checked 1,432 deer in Mercer County in 2025-26, against 1,307 in 2024-25.
| County | Mercer Wildlife Area acres in it | Deer, 2025 | Deer, 2024 | Deer, 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer County | 323 | 1,432 | 1,307 | 1,137 |
Harvest for the whole county, not the hunting area alone: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22).
How do you get to Mercer Wildlife Area?
Nearest towns: Montezuma (next to it), Celina (3 miles), Coldwater (3 miles) and Chickasaw (5 miles). Highways within 5 miles: OH 219, OH 29, OH 703, OH 118 and OH 274.
What other public land is near Mercer Wildlife Area?
ODNR areas open to hunting within 10 miles:
- Grand Lake St Marys State Park: 14,101 acres, next to it
- Burntwood-Langenkamp Wetland: 89 acres, 1 mile away
- Coldwater Creek Nature & Wildlife Corridor: 116 acres, 1 mile away
- Windy Point Wetlands: 42 acres, 1 mile away
- Prairie Creek Nature State Park: 37 acres, 1.9 miles away
- Chickasaw Creek Treatment Wetlands: 36 acres, 4.9 miles away
Public land within 3 miles of Mercer Wildlife Area
Counting Mercer Wildlife Area itself, 6,720 of the 24,690 acres within 3 miles of its boundary are public land open to the public (27.2%), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries.
| Manager | Acres within 3 miles |
|---|---|
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 6,591 |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 66 |
| Land trusts and other open land | 35 |
| Other state land | 28 |
Questions hunters ask
Where is Mercer Wildlife Area?
In Mercer County, next to Montezuma.
Can you hunt on Mercer Wildlife Area?
Yes, with restrictions: ODNR's layer lists hunting here as restricted. The area's hunting map shows where.
How much public land is around Mercer Wildlife Area?
6,720 acres within 3 miles of its boundary, Mercer Wildlife Area included, by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries. The closest other ODNR area open to hunting is Grand Lake St Marys State Park (next to it).
Get a Ohio hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Ohio are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Ohio included.
Where these facts come from
- Area description, species, rules and directions: ODNR, Mercer Wildlife Area; ODNR lands hunting status.
- Boundary and acres: ODNR's map layer above. Surrounding public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and ODNR's land boundaries with hunting status.
- Deer harvest: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22).
FilledTag is not part of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife. Check ODNR's rules and posted signs before you go.