Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex
Northeast Region
 


340 Smith Road
Shirley, NY 11967

Refuge employee conducting surveys. Credit: USFWS
Refuge employee conducting surveys. Credit: USFWS

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 protecting fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats.

Goals

  • 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.
  • 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 upland dependent wildlife.

Prescribed fire improves wildlife habitat and human safety by reducing overgrowth. Credit: USFWS
Prescribed fire improves wildlife habitat and human safety by reducing overgrowth. Credit: USFWS

Wetland Restoration

The complex actively manages and restores coastal wetland and subtidal habitats. Wetlands benefit waterfowl like black duck and Atlantic brant, as well as colonial nesting birds such as herons, terns and cormorants. Wetland restoration efforts also provide habitat for shorebirds, fish and aquatic invertebrates.

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 (pitch pine, warm season  grasses), manage grasslands, remove non‑native plants, and improve feeding and nesting areas for wildlife.

Refuge Partners - Working Together for Wildlife

The LI NWR Complex works with other agencies and organizations to achieve  management goals on and off refuge lands. Developing partnerships are vital to the success of managing all aspects of our refuges from land acquisition and protection to habitat and wildlife management to providing wildlife-dependent recreation.
Last updated: March 1, 2012