The Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge is located just east of the village of

Lloyd Harbor, New York Lloyd Harbor is a village in the Town of Huntington in Suffolk County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village's population was 3,660. History In 1654, the Matinecock Native Americ ...

, on the north shore of Long Island, east of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. It is managed by the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

as part of the

Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex is a National Wildlife Refuge complex in the state of New York. All of the component refuges are located on Long Island. The Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex consists of seven national wildl ...

. The refuge is composed of mature

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

- hickory forest, a rocky beach, a

brackish Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estu ...

pond, and several

vernal Vernal, the county seat and largest city in Uintah County is in northeastern Utah, approximately east of Salt Lake City and west of the Colorado border. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 9,089. The population has since grown to ...

ponds. The land and waters support a variety of songbirds (particularly

warbler Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous. Sylvioid warblers Th ...

s during spring migration), mammals,

shorebird 245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...

s, fish, reptiles and amphibians. During the colder months,

diving duck The diving ducks, commonly called pochards or scaups, are a category of duck which feed by diving beneath the surface of the water. They are part of Anatidae, the diverse and very large family that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The diving d ...

s are common offshore, while

harbor seal The harbor (or harbour) seal (''Phoca vitulina''), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared se ...

s occasionally use the beach and nearby rocks as resting sites. New York State and federally protected piping plover,

least tern The least tern (''Sternula antillarum'') is a species of tern that breeds in North America and locally in northern South America. It is closely related to, and was formerly often considered conspecific with, the little tern of the Old World. Ot ...

, and

common tern The common tern (''Sterna hirundo'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, its four subspecies breeding in temperate and subarctic regions of Europe, Asia and North America. It is strongly migrator ...

depend on the refuge's rocky shore for

foraging Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Foraging theory is a branch of behavioral ecology that studies the foraging behavi ...

and rearing young. The spring bloom at Target Rock is a reminder of its days as a garden estate, with flowering rhododendrons and mountain laurel.

References

External links

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Target Rock National Wildlife Refuge
* {{authority control Huntington, New York National Wildlife Refuges in New York (state) Protected areas of Suffolk County, New York Protected areas established in 1967 1967 establishments in New York (state)