Natural Areas of the South Shore of Long Island

South Shore Nature Center
(East Islip)

An excellent example of teamwork between organizations is the South Shore Nature Center. The Nature Conservancy acquired about 44 acres between 1969 and 1972. The Town of Islip purchased 87 acres in the northern half, while the county obtained most of the south half. The NY Department of Environmental Conservation acquired the southern tip. These were cobbled together to create the 206-acre nature center. The town has operated it since 1977.

Visitors start with an excellent nature museum. Many nature education programs and tours are given to all kinds of groups. There is an attractive 2.5-mile network of trails, half of which are wheelchair-accessible boardwalks. They reveal the transition from one habitat to another by taking you through upland woods, then wetland woods, followed by freshwater pond and marsh, and finally saltwater marsh.

Common in the upland woods are the trees black gum, sassafras and red maple, all brilliant scarlet or orange in autumn. They grow with black cherry, white and black oaks, mockernut hickory, and gray birch. Virginia creeper and bittersweet, also brilliant in autumn, and bayberry are common shrubs or vines. Woodpeckers, chickadees, titmice and wrens live in these woods, along with gray and flying squirrels. Wood ducks, screech owls, and bats nest in holes in trees.

In the wetland woods and thickets, you also find black gum and red maple. A nice treat is American holly and its relative, winterberry, both with bright red berries (not edible unless you’re a bird). Sweet pepperbush, swamp honeysuckle, and swamp azalea offer sweet-smelling flowers, while skunk cabbage offers … well … skunk odor! Other shrubs include northern arrow-wood and high bush blueberry. An excellent growth of lichens, a mushroom relative, can be seen on barks of trees. This habitat is also a songbird haven.

At the freshwater pond and marsh, many frogs, painted and snapping turtles, muskrats, tree swallows, kingfishers, and green herons can be seen. Notice the nest boxes for wood ducks. Red-winged blackbirds and marsh wrens sing or call loudly. Deer and red fox sometimes come to the edge of the marsh.

The freshwater marsh serves as a buffer between the upland woods and the salt marsh. The cattail growth indicates that this is fresh water only. American holly, pitch pine, and bayberry grow here and there on dry spots. Be sure to avoid poison ivy!

When you enter the salt marsh on the boardwalk, a broad vista opens up. All kinds of long-legged wading birds, waterfowl, gulls and terns live here. The threatened osprey is a treat to see.

The property is open 9 am to 5 pm every day from April through October. During the other months, it is closed on weekends. For information, call (631) 224-5436, 50 Irish Lane, East Islip, NY 11730.

How to Get There: Take Southern State Parkway toward Heckscher State Park and get off at exit 45 west. Head west on Route 27A (Montauk Highway) for about one mile. When you cross the intersection with Carleton Avenue/Woodland Drive, turn left at the next block (Bayview Avenue). Look for the small sign for the South Shore Nature Center. Drive 1.25 miles and turn right into the entrance. On road maps, the property is labeled as Islip Meadows County Nature Preserve.

After enjoying the museum, obtain a trail guide. To find where the Upland Trail begins, stand with your back to the museum’s front door. The trail is across the driveway, 200 feet ahead at the edge of the woods.

Use the trail map to follow all the trails that pass the 29 stations described in the trail guide.

Access Guide Introduction :: Map and Guide :: More Estuary Site Information
	South Shore Nature Center (East Islip) An excellent example of teamwork between organizations is the South Shore Nature Center. The Nature Conservancy acquired about 44 acres between 1969 and 1972. The Town of Islip purchased 87 acres in the northern half, while the county obtained most of the south half. The NY Department of Environmental Conservation acquired the southern tip. These were cobbled together to create the 206-acre nature center. The town has operated it since 1977. Visitors start with an excellent nature museum. Many nature education programs and tours are given to all kinds of groups. There is an attractive 2.5-mile network of trails, half of which are wheelchair-accessible boardwalks. They reveal the transition from one habitat to another by taking you through upland woods, then wetland woods, followed by freshwater pond and marsh, and finally saltwater marsh. Common in the upland woods are the trees black gum, sassafras and red maple, all brilliant scarlet or orange in autumn. They grow with black cherry, white and black oaks, mockernut hickory, and gray birch. Virginia creeper and bittersweet, also brilliant in autumn, and bayberry are common shrubs or vines. Woodpeckers, chickadees, titmice and wrens live in these woods, along with gray and flying squirrels. Wood ducks, screech owls, and bats nest in holes in trees. In the wetland woods and thickets, you also find black gum and red maple. A nice treat is American holly and its relative, winterberry, both with bright red berries (not edible unless you’re a bird). Sweet pepperbush, swamp honeysuckle, and swamp azalea offer sweet-smelling flowers, while skunk cabbage offers … well … skunk odor! Other shrubs include northern arrow-wood and high bush blueberry. An excellent growth of lichens, a mushroom relative, can be seen on barks of trees. This habitat is also a songbird haven. At the freshwater pond and marsh, many frogs, painted and snapping turtles, muskrats, tree swallows, kingfishers, and green herons can be seen. Notice the nest boxes for wood ducks. Red-winged blackbirds and marsh wrens sing or call loudly. Deer and red fox sometimes come to the edge of the marsh. The freshwater marsh serves as a buffer between the upland woods and the salt marsh. The cattail growth indicates that this is fresh water only. American holly, pitch pine, and bayberry grow here and there on dry spots. Be sure to avoid poison ivy! When you enter the salt marsh on the boardwalk, a broad vista opens up. All kinds of long-legged wading birds, waterfowl, gulls and terns live here. The threatened osprey is a treat to see. The property is open 9 am to 5 pm every day from April through October. During the other months, it is closed on weekends. For information, call (631) 224-5436, 50 Irish Lane, East Islip, NY 11730. How to Get There: Take Southern State Parkway toward Heckscher State Park and get off at exit 45 west. Head west on Route 27A (Montauk Highway) for about one mile. When you cross the intersection with Carleton Avenue/Woodland Drive, turn left at the next block (Bayview Avenue). Look for the small sign for the South Shore Nature Center. Drive 1.25 miles and turn right into the entrance. On road maps, the property is labeled as Islip Meadows County Nature Preserve. After enjoying the museum, obtain a trail guide. To find where the Upland Trail begins, stand with your back to the museum’s front door. The trail is across the driveway, 200 feet ahead at the edge of the woods. Use the trail map to follow all the trails that pass the 29 stations described in the trail guide.