Brant Point Wildlife Sanctuary

Beach 72 St. bet. Bayfields Ave. and Hillmeyer Ave.

Brant Point Wildlife Sanctuary, a 19.7-acre wetland area on Jamaica Bay, was established as a protected area under the Buffer the Bay program, a joint effort in the late 1980s by the Trust for Public Land and New York City Audubon (now called NYC Bird Alliance). The goal of this initiative was to reclaim land around Jamaica Bay in order to protect New York City’s largest and most vital natural marshland. Brant Point Wildlife Sanctuary, located on the southern portion of the bay, was assigned to Parks in 1992. An additional parcel of land was acquired by condemnation for the City of New York in 1997 and then transferred to Parks.

The Brant Point Wildlife Sanctuary provides nesting grounds for waterfowl and shore birds, which can be reliably observed every year. Notables include the snowy egret (Egretta thula) and the glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus).