VISIT US
The Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary is a 179-acre wildlife sanctuary adjacent to Rye Playland, in Rye, NY. The sanctuary features a shoreline on Long Island Sound, Manursing Lake, salt-marsh wetland, trails through a deciduous forest, a bamboo grove, and fields of native grasses and wildflowers. The National Audubon Society has acknowledged the sanctuary as an Important Bird Area. The sanctuary’s nature center building has nature exhibits and a bird viewing window, and a setting for educational programs. Learn more about the history of the Sanctuary.
DIRECTIONS
From I-95, Northbound or Southbound take Exit 19 (Playland Parkway) to Playland. If you are a member of the sanctuary, your barcoded membership card will allow you to open the yellow automatic gate in the LEFT lane at the ticket booths at Playland’s main entrance. Continue driving to the back right side of the main parking lot by the Dragon Coaster ride. You’ll see another automatic gate. Scan your card again, and continue straight down the road into the sanctuary. Manursing Lake is on the left and Long Island Sound and Kayak Launch area are on the right. There is a parking area in front of the nature center. Note: Please do not park on the grassy areas. See our google map insert for more detailed directions.
Non-members will have to pay Playland’s entrance fee, park in their lot, and walk down the road to the sanctuary when Playland is in operation.
Enjoy and Explore!
Here are a few of the things you can enjoy and explore while visiting the sanctuary:
- Year-round birding. The sanctuary has been officially recognized as “An Important Bird Area” by the National Audubon Society. During the spring and summer months, Osprey can be observed nesting on the platform near the lake. Bird feeders at the nature center area are stocked from October through April.
- Nature trails for easy walking through Meadows, Fields, and Forested habitats
- Our walk-in Pollinator Garden is a showcase of native plant species that are deer-browse resistant and will attract an abundance of bees, butterflies, and even humming birds. You can plant these species in your own backyard or even in pots on your deck and help pollinators by providing nectar and pollen food sources. Informational panels in the garden educate and encourage visitors to learn about the needs of our local pollinator species, and a list of flowers that you can plant.
- A view of Long Island Sound is just a short walk from the nature center parking area
- What do honeybees do all day? Come look at our Observation Beehive case inside the nature center and see for yourself! Watch the worker bees build the honeycomb, fill it with honey, and tend to the brood cells, and take care of collecting nectar and pollen. If you are lucky, you may spot the queen bee as she comes out to lay her eggs.
- Interactive educational exhibits, paid for by membership dues, are in the process of being created during the next year. Stop in and see the exhibits we have so far, which include a microscope station, interactive map of the sanctuary, and a match-up quiz exhibit.
- Nature education programs are offered on most Saturday’s during the year. Check the Friends website for current offerings.
- Take a break from your busy life and enjoy simply relaxing while being surrounded by the beauty of nature!
- Have a nature observation or question? Stop by and talk with the nature center staff.
- Nature Photographers and artists will find a great many subjects throughout the year, from the macro to micro. There are always wildlife subjects, landscapes, and the many textures of the natural world that will attract your eye and speak to your heart.