Congressman Lester Wolff Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge

The Congressman Lester Wolff Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge was donated to the Service by the Town of Oyster Bay in 1968 as a habitat for migratory birds, particularly wintering waterfowl. It is unique in the System, serving as a marine refuge rather than the more traditional terrestrial refuge: it comprises the waters and marshes of Oyster Bay and Cold Spring harbors, and is one of the few bay-bottom refuges owned and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Located on the north shore of Long Island in eastern Nassau County, the 3,209-acre refuge includes subtidal habitat from bay bottom to the mean high tide line, saltmarsh, and a small freshwater pond. It is the largest refuge in the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex and receives the most public use of all the refuges. The State of New York has designated it a Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat. The sheltered nature of the bay makes it extremely attractive as winter habitat for a variety of waterfowl, especially diving ducks - black ducks, greater scaup, bufflehead, canvasback and long-tailed ducks - along with shorebirds, terns and cormorants. Other marine organisms common to the refuge include northern diamondback terrapins, harbor seals, sea turtles, finfish and shellfish. The bay supports the only commercial oyster farm aquaculture operation remaining on Long Island, and an estimated 90 percent of the commercial oysters in New York originate from areas associated with the refuge. The refuge is open to the public. Fishing, wildlife observation, photography and environmental education are approved recreational uses; shell fishing requires a Town of Oyster Bay permit. Management activities include wetland restoration and protection of the natural shoreline and vegetation.