From the glacial outwashes of Queens to the twin forks of the East End, our fish-shaped Paumanok is alive with the flora and fauna of the natural world. About 13,000 species of plants, animals and insects share this island with us. Birds of prey like marsh hawks and merlins and American kestrels stop at Fire Island on their fall journeys south. Tiny carnivorous plants called bladderwort and sundew trap insects in the pine barrens. Whales sound off Montauk.
Ospreys raise families on utility poles throughout Shelter Island and on platforms in Jamaica Bay.
Peregrine falcons nest on the towers of a bridge that spans the bay and on the rooftop of the Nassau County Medical Center in East Meadow. Monarchs and swallowtails light on the butterfly bushes we plant in our own backyards. Too often, we disregard the natural wonders all around us. We're aware of the raccoons that topple our garbage cans, the squirrels that devour our tulip bulbs, the rabbits that raid our lettuce beds. But we are less likely to realize that southern sea turtles and northern seals visit our waters, or that the horseshoe crabs that ride on the high tides to mate are an ancient breed performing a prehistoric ritual on our beaches.