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Welcome! Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex
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Continued from the Home Page ]
Common Wildlife of the Long Island NWR Complex
“All Creatures Great & Small”
The Long Island
National Wildlife Refuge Complex was established to protect and
enhance migratory bird populations, threatened and endangered
species and fish that use both fresh and salt water in their life
cycles. Protecting habitat for these species comes first over other
activities at the Complex. However, all wildlife benefit from the
Refuge units and their management programs.
Numerous & Varied
Wildlife flourish from the habitat protection
and management at the Complex, which provides a place for over 300
species of birds, 35 species of mammals, 30 species of reptiles &
amphibians, 100 species of fish and more than 500 species of plants!
Because of this, you are likely to see a variety of animals during
your visits to any one of the Refuges.
Habitats - Long Island Refuge Complex Protects Habitat From the
Atlantic Flyway to Pine Barren Forests
Migration Stopover & Wintering Grounds
The Atlantic Flyway
is a “path” birds follow from the Southern hemisphere to the
Northern hemisphere during migration. The Long Island Refuges
have a strategic location on this “path”, especially for birds
dependent on aquatic habitats. Terrestrial birds make heavy use of
the Flyway during migration, particularly the edges between upland
and aquatic habitats.
Tidal Wetlands
During migration,
shorebirds and waterfowl use the Complex for resting and feeding.
Tidal wetlands support wintering waterfowl, particularly black duck
and Atlantic brant, and other wildlife including nesting osprey and
harriers. Wading birds and kingfishers hunt the wetlands for fish.
Shorebirds make use of tidal flats and salt marshes.
Bays & Beaches
Several of Long
Island’s Refuges contain beaches as well as bays. Beaches are
becoming increasingly important for threatened and endangered
species like piping plover and roseate terns. Sea and bay ducks,
osprey, sea turtles, terns and harbor seals also make use of the
beaches and particularly the adjacent bays.
Long Island Pine Barrens
Pitch pine trees
distinguish pine barren habitats from other North American forest
types. The dominant vegetation here depends on fire to reproduce and
compete with other plants. Pitch pine and oaks form the overstory,
while the understory serves wildlife with fruits from blueberry and
huckleberry.
Pine barrens and
other forest types contained within the Complex support breeding
migratory songbirds including warblers, vireos, wrens and
flycatchers. Owls and other raptors also use the forests and
openings to nest and hunt throughout the year.
Management -
Restoring Important Wildlife Habitat Through Effective Management
As part of the
National Wildlife Refuge System, the Long Island National Wildlife
Refuge Complex is committed to managing wildlife and their habitats.
The Complex conducts management programs to protect our nation’s
wildlife.
Goals
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Provide and
manage a diversity of high quality habitats to support breeding,
migrating and/or wintering birds, threatened & endangered species,
and fish.
Maintain high
quality habitats for all native wildlife and plant species.
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Establish and
maintain partnerships to benefit wildlife for present and future
generations.
Terrestrial Management
The Complex manages
upland habitats (grassland & forest) for a variety of wildlife.
Forests are managed to maintain native species and diversity, as
well as to reduce the impacts of exotic species and forest pests.
Forest openings and grasslands provide additional habitat diversity
for the Complex’s upland‑dependent wildlife.
Wetland Restoration
The Complex
routinely restores coastal wetland and subtidal habitats. Wetlands
benefit waterfowl like black duck and Atlantic brant, as well as
colonial nesting birds like herons, terns and cormorants. Wetlands
are also habitat for the majority of Long Island’s shorebirds.
Prescribed Fire
This management
technique benefits a variety of natural resources. In areas of Long
Island where prescribed fire has been used, the Complex has been
able to reduce fuels for protection from wildfire and restore a
natural ecological process—fire—to wildlands. Burning helps to
maintain fire‑dependent vegetation (like pitch pine & certain
grasses), manage grasslands, remove non‑native plants, and improve
feeding and nesting areas for wildlife.
Refuge Partners — Working Together for Wildlife
The nine units of
the Complex are only a part of Long Island’s larger ecosystem
upon which many wildlife species depend.
The Complex works together with other agencies and groups to achieve
its management goals both on and off of refuge lands.
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