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Living In Oceanside/IslandPark
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Christina Daly/Herald
Inside Oceanside’s Marine Nature Study Area sits a building used for educational purposes where children and adults may come and learn about the vast marine, insect and plant life that thrive in the 52-acre nature preserve.
‘A gem for Long Island’
Courtesy Marine Nature Study Area
There are numerous mammals scurrying about the lands of the Marine Nature Study Area.
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Oceanside’s Marine Nature Study Area
ake a walk through Oceanside Park towards the Golf Club at Middle Bay and avert your eyes to the 52-acre preserve nestled in between; listen closely, you might hear the soft chirps of the hundreds of birds within, fluttering from tree to tree. That’s Oceanside’s Marine Nature Study Area, a marine and estuarine ecosystem of animal, aquatic, insect and plant life, which recently reopened after shuttering its doors for months during the peak of the virus. It is devoted to environmental education and natural history and houses more than 200 species of birds for yours and their viewing pleasure. After closing due to Covid, it reopened in June. The nature area — a salt marsh cut by tidal streams — opened in 1970, and is operated yearround by the Town of Hempstead’s Department of Conservation and Waterways. It’s divided into eight instruction zones that deal with different aspects of the marine environment; schools and summer camps from around Long Island frequent here to educate their students and members.
Courtesy Marine Nature Study Area
More than 200 species of birds call the Marine Nature Study Area their home.
“It gives people, not just children, but people in general a sense of what the South Shore of Long Island, the natural part, was like before it was developed,” said Ned Black, former director of the MNSA who taught biology, earth science and marine science in Oceanside schools for 50 years. He pointed out in particular salt marshes like this are important because they produce an enormous amount of organic matter. “It’s a gem for Long Island, and of Oceanside,” Black noted, hoping more will visit. After the area was ravaged by hurricanes Sandy and Irene, the MNSA revitalized the space with a new boardwalk and restored trails. And its education facility is also soon getting some upgrades: handicapped accessibility, advanced technology, interactive classrooms and fish tanks. The place will be energy-efficient, partly reliant on alternative energy, and built using natural materials, just like the land it sits on. There is no better time than now to visit.
