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Wildlife by season near New Yorkday trips within 250 miles

Plan this weekend from New York →

Where can I see wildlife by season near New York?

We track 4 wildlife by season places within 250 straight-line miles of New York, in New Jersey, New York and Maryland. The nearest is Sandy Hook, about 16 miles away (local timing: spring and summer).

Target Rock Refuge usually starts first (local timing: in the spring and summer months (March – September)) and Blackwater Refuge ends last (usually: late September and early October).

Checked against 2 official sources · How we check →

Sources: National Park Service, Sandy Hook ↗ (opens in a new tab), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Target Rock NWR: Species ↗ (opens in a new tab), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Blackwater NWR seasons of wildlife ↗ (opens in a new tab) National Park Service sources: no claim to original U.S. Government works.

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Pick your week

Pick a week: the places usually in their window then light up. Each place's own usual window, or its region's or state's timing where it has none (labeled); not a forecast.

Week of Mar 1

  • In their usual window this week
  • Other weeks

In its usual season · week of Mar 1

  • Target Rock Refuge

    Local timing: in the spring and summer months (March – September)

    32 miles from New York

By distance from New York

Nearest first; straight-line miles, roads are longer

  • Sandy Hook

    Nesting piping plovers in New Jersey

    16 mi from New York

    Season: Spring and summer

  • A wooden boardwalk running between bare trees on a sunny early-spring day

    Great Swamp Refuge

    Wildlife through the year in New Jersey

    31 mi from New York

    Season: Spring

  • A sailboat with a bright striped sail on blue water, a wooded shoreline and four tall striped smokestacks in the distance

    Target Rock Refuge

    Ospreys in New York

    32 mi from New York

    Season: March – September

  • Channels of blue water between golden marsh grass, with a few pines on the horizon

    Blackwater Refuge

    Southbound songbirds in Maryland

    192 mi from New York

    Usual peak: Late September and early October

Next stop

In season now within about 100 miles

Next to open near New York: Ospreys at Target Rock Refuge, in the spring and summer months (March – September).

Questions people ask

What's the closest wildlife by season to New York?

Sandy Hook, about 16 straight-line miles away. Local timing: spring and summer.Source: National Park Service, Sandy Hook ↗ (opens in a new tab)

When is the best week for wildlife by season near New York?

Usually the week of Mar 29. 3 of the 4 places with timing are in their usual window then: Sandy Hook, Great Swamp Refuge and Target Rock Refuge. A season can run early or late.Sources: National Park Service, Sandy Hook ↗ (opens in a new tab), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge ↗ (opens in a new tab), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Target Rock NWR: Species ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Where does the wildlife season start first near New York?

Target Rock Refuge (32 miles): local timing: in the spring and summer months (March – September).Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Target Rock NWR: Species ↗ (opens in a new tab)

How far are these places from New York?

From 16 to 192 straight-line miles; roads are longer. 3 are within 100 miles.