Birds of Long Island

Birds of Long Island

AP Environmental Science

Mr. Clark

National Wildlife Refuges The Oyster Bay and Target Rock National

Wildlife Refuges are located on the north shore of Long Island, east of New York City.

Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge

The Oyster Bay NWR is a 3,209-acre Refuge that includes sub-tidal (bay bottom to mean high tide line) habitats, salt marsh and a freshwater pond.

Most Long Island water bird species have been documented on the Refuge.

Wintering waterfowl include black ducks, greater scaup, bufflehead, canvasback and long-tailed ducks .

Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge

Target Rock NWR is an 80-acre refuge composed of mature oak-hickory forest, a half-mile rocky beach, a brackish pond, and several vernal ponds. It is very close to Caumsett State Park.

The land and waters support a variety of songbirds (particularly warblers during spring migration), mammals, shorebirds, fish, reptiles and amphibians.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge

Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge The most common raptors observed at the

Target Rock NWR include red-tailed hawk, great horned owl, eastern screech owl, osprey, and American kestrel.

Screech owls are abundant and easily detected on the Refuge.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge Waterfowl: Waterfowl use occurs in the

brackish pond and the rocky shoreline.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge Puddle ducks comprise about a fourth of

the ducks using the Refuge and black ducks are by far the dominant puddle duck.

Black ducks use both the brackish pond and the rocky shoreline.

The most common diving ducks include common golden-eye, greater scaup, long-tailed duck, bufflehead, and red-breasted merganser.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge Shorebirds, Gulls, Terns and Allied

Species, Common loons, red-throated loons, great cormorants, and horned grebes are common in winter off the Refuge's beach.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge During the summer, double-crested

cormorants are easily observed. Among the six species of long-legged

waders present, those commonly documented on the Refuge include great blue herons, snowy egrets, and great egrets.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge Four species of gulls are present on the Refuge,

while sandpipers also make use of the rocky beach and brackish pond.

The most common shorebird species include greater yellowlegs, black-bellied plover, semi-palmated plover, spotted sandpiper and willet.

Common and least terns are observed on the Refuge from May through September.

Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge Other Migratory Birds: A total of 35 neo-

tropical bird species have been documented on the Refuge.

The most common include gray catbird, American robin, Rufous-sided towhee, northern flicker, northern oriole, northern cardinal, bank swallow, and house finch.

Crow

Blue Jay

Purple Finch

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

Baltimore Oriole

Red-winged Blackbird

Gray Catbird

Starling

Tufted Titmouse

Yellow-Shafted Northern Flicker

Great Blue Heron

Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker

Eastern Screech Owl

Belted Kingfisher

Great Horned Owl

Sparrow Hawk (American Kestrel)

Turkey Vulture

Black Vulture

Barn Owl

Tree Swallow

Purple Martin

Barn Swallow

Black Crowned Night Heron

Downy Woodpecker

Mourning Dove

House Sparrow

Cedar Waxwing

Robin

Wood Thrush

Cardinal

Rufous-Sided Tohee (Eastern Towhee)

White-Breasted Nuthatch

Black-Capped Chickadee

Red-Tailed Hawk

Osprey