Meet animals at Long Island farms, aquariums and other preserves this season
Visitors at the Long Island Aquarium in Riverhead check out the shark exhibit. Credit: Randee Daddona
Whether you want to see a goat, spy on osprey, watch the sharks or just view the unusual, Long Island has an array of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish or amphibians that should suit your fancy. Here's our list of several places you can take the family to get a closer peek at nature. Be aware that feeding and/or petting the animals is off limits at many places.
ANIMAL FARM PETTING ZOO AND FAMILY PARK, 296 Wading River Rd., Manorville, 631-878-1785, afpz.org. Features Camel, parrots, monkeys, llamas, reptiles, emus, wallabies, zebu miniature cows and other exotic animals. Farm animals and babies can be petted and bottle fed. Playgrounds and picnic areas. Pony ride and Safari tour train for additional fee. Hours 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily through mid-Nov. Fee $15.50, $13.50 ages 2-16 and seniors 65 and older.
The dinosaur exhibit at the Center for Science Teaching and Learning in Rockville Center. Credit: Kendall Rodriguez
CENTER FOR SCIENCE TEACHING AND LEARNING, 1450 Tanglewood Rd., Rockville Centre, 516-764-0045, cstl.org. Features Dinosaurs!, an exhibit including robotic and life-size skeletal dinosaurs; Animal Adventure Park including live animals. Hours 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Thurs.-Tues., call for reservation. Fee $15, $12 seniors and ages 1-12.
A pair of baby common map turtles which are about a week and a half old are seen at the Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery and Aquarium. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
COLD SPRING HARBOR FISH HATCHERY AND AQUARIUM, 1660 Rte. 25A, Cold Spring Harbor, 516-692-6768, cshfishhatchery.org. Features Brook and rainbow trout, from fry through maturity, as well as freshwater fish, turtles, snakes and amphibians native to the state. Offers year-round Catch & Keep trout fishing program. Hours 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat.-Sun. June-Aug. Fee $7, $6 seniors 65 and older, $5 ages 3-12.
Julianna Morgan with a new friend at the Holtsville Ecology Site. Credit: Diane Radtke
HOLTSVILLE PARK, ECOLOGY SITE AND ANIMAL PRESERVE, 249 Buckley Rd., Holtsville, 631-758-9664, brookhavenny.gov. Features Outdoor ecology center, domestic and wild animals, greenhouses; educational tours and classes available. Includes Safety Town, a replica of a miniature village with an indoor educational facility. Also picnic area, playground, jogging trail. Hours Animal preserve open 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Thurs.-Mon, closed Tues.-Wed. for private groups. Fee Free (fee for parking).
The Penguin Pavilion at the Long Island Aquarium in Riverhead. Credit: Randee Daddona
LONG ISLAND AQUARIUM, 431 E. Main St., Riverhead, 631-208-9200, longislandaquarium.com. Features Coral reef displays, shark tank, sea lion shows, penguins, touch tanks and more than 100 exhibits and interactive experiences, including butterflies, bugs and birds. Hours 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily. Fee $39.99 for adults 13-61; $29.99 for seniors 62+; $27.99 for kids 3-12, free on your birthday.
Clifford the giraffe at the Long Island Game Farm in Manorville. Credit: James Carbone
LONG ISLAND GAME FARM WILDLIFE PARK AND CHILDREN’S ZOO, 489 Chapman Blvd., Manorville, 631-878-6644, longislandgamefarm.com, 631-878-6644. Features Giraffe, goats, wallaby and tortoise encounters, petting zoos, picnic areas and snack bar. Hours 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily through October. Fee $24.95, $18.95 ages 3-12, seniors, and military.
The Norman J. Levy Park and Preserve in Merrick has a barn for goats. Credit: Newsday/Barbara Alper
NORMAN J. LEVY PARK, 1600 Merrick Rd., Merrick, 516-804-2000, hempsteadny.gov. Features A herd of 20 Nigerian dwarf goats can be seen grazing; wildlife including osprey, ducks, foxes and reptiles. Also features 50 acres surrounded by tidal wetland, hiking trails, accessible fishing pier on Merrick Bay and canoe and kayak launch. No dogs. Hours Opens 7 a.m. daily, closing time varies seasonally. Fee Free.
Ducks at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge in Quogue. Credit: Gordon M. Grant
QUOGUE WILDLIFE REFUGE, 3 Old Country Rd., Quogue, 631-653-4771, quoguewildliferefuge.org. Features 305 acres, 7 miles of trails through habitats including pine barrens, bogs, wetlands, a field, and a tidal estuary; outdoor wildlife complex houses permanently injured wildlife that require human care to survive including owls, falcons, a fox, giant tortoise and other native New York animals; The indoor Charles Banks Belt Nature Center is currently closed due to COVID. Educational programming held throughout the year. Summer camp for grades pre-K through 11th. Hours Trails open sunrise to sunset. No dogs. Fee Free
SOUTH SHORE NATURE CENTER, 130 Bayview Ave., East Islip, 631-581-1562, seatuck.org. Features 2.3-mile trail through salt marsh, upland oak and hickory forest; nature museum, picnic area, weekend programs. Hours Grounds open daily 9 a.m.-5 p.m., visitor center open 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Fee Free; fee for select programs.
Isla Hannifin, 9, of Port Jefferson Station, was face to face as she was practicing goat yoga at the Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank. Credit: Danielle Hannifin
SUFFOLK COUNTY FARM AND EDUCATION CENTER, 350 Yaphank Ave., Yaphank, 631-852-4600, ccesuffolk.org. Features See llamas, sheep, pigs, rabbits, cows and other farm animals; picnic areas; nature-based programs; camps; programs for special-needs audiences. Hours 9 a.m.-3 p.m. daily, closed holidays. Fee Free except for special events and some programs; $4 animal feed cup.
Program director Veronica Sayers holds a rescued turtle in the Reptile Room at the Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown. Credit: Raychel Brightman
SWEETBRIAR NATURE CENTER, 62 Eckernkamp Dr., Smithtown, 631-979-6344, sweetbriarnc.org. Features Hiking trails through wetlands, fields and forests with views of the Nissequogue River; Nature museum with interactive simulated rainforest and local forest exhibits (fee). Seasonal Butterfly vivarium open from June-Sept. (fee). The nature center has a reptile room and rehabs a variety of wildlife including owls, birds, ducks, turtles and goats. Hours 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Fee $2 rainforest exhibit, $5 for Butterfly Vivarium.
TAKAPAUSHA MUSEUM AND PRESERVE, 2225 Washington Ave., Seaford, 516-571-7443, nassaucountyny.gov. Features a 3,000-square-foot natural history museum with displays about the ecology of Long Island, as well as animal exhibits and shows and interactive activities for children; along the 5 miles of nature trails see more than 170 bird species have been identified within the preserve, along with raccoon, muskrat, gray squirrel and opossum; picnic area. Hours 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Thur.-Sun. Fee $5, $3 ages 5-12 and ages 60 and older.
A variety of birds is identified by a placard at the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center in Oyster Bay. Credit: Linda Rosier
THEODORE ROOSEVELT SANCTUARY AND AUDUBON CENTER, 134 Cove Rd., Oyster Bay, 516-922-3200, ny.audubon.org/trsanctuary. Features 13 acres of trails. View songbirds and other wildlife on the trails and gardens. Hours Gardens and trails open daily dawn-dusk. Fee Free.
White Post Farms on Old Country Road in Melville. Credit: Jeff Bachner
WHITE POST FARMS, 250 Old Country Rd., Melville, 631-351-9373, animalpettingzoo.com. Features Market, garden center, petting zoo and animal farm with flight aviary and monkey barn. Pony/train rides (fee). Fee $20.95 sold online by appointment, walk-ins as space permits. Includes farm, playground, some entertainment.
