South Fork Natural History Museum & Nature Center

Full Frost Super Moon Hike
2025-11-05 17:00 - 18:00 (America/New_York) | SOFO
The Frost Moon is also known as the Full Beaver Moon, so named as beavers tend to build their winter dams at this time of year. Join us for this leisurely paced one-hour hike in Vineyard Field, the field behind the South Fork Natural History Museum (SOFO).
Co-sponsored by Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt & the South Fork Natural History Museum (SOFO).
Meet at the SOFO Museum parking lot, 377 Bridgehampton Turnpike, 200 yards north of the RR tracks. To register, email: greenbeltnews@aol.com.
Hike Leader: Jean McDermott, 631-599-2391.

MUSEUM CLOSED: Maintenance
2025-11-05

Storytime & Craft: Hermit Crabs & Fishes
2025-10-26 13:00, 2025-10-26 10:30 | SOFO
Join us for fun stories and meet some of our marine neighbors, hermit crabs and fishes, to learn what special abilities they have to survive in the wild. You can also decorate a hermit crab or fish picture to take home.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes, SOFO Environmental Outdoor Education Specialist
This program is for families.
For non-members, this program is included in the museum admission fee. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Celebration of Larry Penny
2025-10-26 12:00 | Wainscott
Please join us as we celebrate the life and work of Larry Penny, naturalist, writer, lifelong learner, and friend.
Please register by October 22.

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Fall Family Fun at Downs Farm Preserve, Cutchogue
2025-10-25 10:00 - 11:30 | Cutchogue
Explore nature outside at Downs Farm Preserve. Halloween costumes welcome! Bring a Halloween bag or a pumpkin bucket to collect natural objects for a fun take-home craft.
Co-sponsored with Group for the East End (GEE) and SOFO.
Walk Leaders: Taralynn Reynolds, Outreach Director (GEE) and Melanie Meade, Education Director (SOFO)
This FREE program is for families and children of all ages. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Feeding Time, Help Feed the Museum’s Turtles & Fish
2025-10-19 11:00 | SOFO
Get ready for a behind-the-scenes tour at SOFO. Sydney will give you a chance to see how we prepare the food for our animals to eat; then you’ll get up close and personal with the animals as they are fed. We’ll investigate food webs and the differences between carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores.
Program Leader: Sydney Mantione, SOFO Environmental Educator
This program is for children ages 5-7.
For non-members, there is a $10 fee for children for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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East End Environment Series: Hidden in Plain Sight: Long Island’s Rare and Unusual Fish with Naturalist Aidan Perkins
2025-10-18 16:00 - 17:00 | SOFO
Join SOFO for light refreshments and a presentation with naturalist Aidan Perkins about his experience with Long Island’s rare and unusual fish.
Long Island is home to an impressive array of fish species, from the freshwater creeks to the expansive saltwater bays. While many species are native to the region, there’s an intriguing phenomenon that adds a unique twist to the island’s aquatic ecosystem. The Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current that flows from the Caribbean north along the Atlantic coast, often carries tropical fish species into Long Island’s bays and inlets. These fish, which typically inhabit Caribbean waters, can be found unexpectedly in the waters around the island, making them a rare and exciting discovery. In this talk, I’ll dive into the science behind how these “tropical” fish make their way to Long Island, as well as share my personal techniques for locating and catching them.
This FREE program is for adults, teens, and children ages 8+. Advanced reservations are required for all events.
Program Leader: Aidan Perkins, Wildlife Biologist

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Lead-backed Salamander Search at Sagg Swamp, Bridgehampton
2025-10-18 10:00 | Bridgehampton
Join SOFO for a chance to learn about the secret life of the Eastern Lead-backed Salamander. Although this salamander species is one of the most abundant vertebrates in forest habitats throughout the Northeast, they are rarely spotted on your average walk through the woods. These salamanders are fossorial, spending most of their time underground. As we roll logs and stones searching for these fascinating critters, we’ll learn about their life underground, as well as their importance in forest ecosystems. Please dress for wet/muddy conditions.
Co-sponsored by the SOFO Young Environmentalists Society (YES!).
Program Leader: Mike Wichrowski, SOFO Herpetological Husbandry Technician
This program is for all ages.
For non-members, there is a $15 fee for adults and a $10 fee for children for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Young Birders Club Meeting
2025-10-18 10:00
Birding is a great way to make new friends, learn about the environment, and get outdoors. Join our Young Birders Club! The Club meets at 10AM on the third Saturday of every month and is open to anyone ages 8 to 18 who is interested in learning about birds. Since Long Island has many great habitats that are home to a wide variety of species, we concentrate on birding in local areas.
Please bring binoculars if you have them (we will have a few pairs to lend) and a field guide to birds of the eastern United States. If you don’t have a field guide, we’ll have one here for you to use.
Club Leader: Aidan Perkins, Wildlife Biologist
This FREE program is for children and adults ages 8-18. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

MUSEUM CLOSED: School Group
2025-10-16

SOFO’s East End Outdoor Nature Education with Crystal at Montauk Point, Montauk
2025-10-15 13:00 - 15:00 | Montauk
SOFO is offering a monthly program which will take place on the 3rd Wednesday of the month at 1 pm for children ages 3 to 7 years and is geared towards homeschooling families. Programs will have a variety of activities to strengthen language development, literacy, math, and science and will take place at various locations on Eastern Long Island.
We will continue our adventures on Wednesday, October 15 exploring rocky ocean life, geology, and erosion at Montauk Point with some stories, simple nature journals, and worksheets to take home. With luck we will spot some seals and early-arrival wintering water birds.
There is an $8 NY State Park parking fee.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes has worked as an environmental educator at SOFO since 2005 and part-time since 2019 after her son Wyatt was born. Wyatt and I look forward to meeting you and learning with you!
There is a $10/child fee (participating adult included) for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Birding with Joe Giunta─Fall Migration at Promised Land
2025-10-12 08:00 | East Hampton
Joe Giunta, an expert birder and delightful bird-walk leader, will take you on this excursion to Promised Land, the perfect location to observe our songbirds during their late fall migration. The combination of ocean beach and field edges increases your opportunity to see late-migrating warblers as they journey south. On previous walks, eight species of sparrows have been seen, as well as a dickcissel and a snow bunting. This location also provides an opportunity to see gannets and ocean ducks.
Walk Leader: Joe Giunta, birding instructor for the Brooklyn Botanic Garden; trip leader for New York City Audubon and lecturer for many local chapters; and owner of Happy Warblers LLC, a birding and educational travel company.
This program is for adults.
For non-members, there is a $15 fee for adults for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt Celebration
2025-10-11 10:00 - 13:00 | SOFO
Hike…Explore…Discover the Long Pond Greenbelt with a day of fun at Vineyard Field behind the South Fork Natural History Museum. Join us for guided trail walks, children’s crafts, and a “Meet the Animals” presentation with Quogue Wildlife Refuge.

Bird photos by Marianne Barnett

Full Hunter's Super Moon Hike
2025-10-06 18:30 - 19:30 | SOFO
Native Americans named this bright moon for obvious reasons. The leaves are falling from trees, the deer are fattened, and it’s time to begin storing up meat for the long winter ahead. Because the fields were traditionally harvested in late September or early October, hunters could easily see fox and other animals that come out to eat the fallen grains. Join us for this leisurely paced one-hour hike in Vineyard Field, the field behind the South Fork Natural History Museum (SOFO).
Co-sponsored by Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt & the South Fork Natural History Museum (SOFO).
Meet at the SOFO Museum parking lot, 377 Bridgehampton Turnpike, 200 yards north of the RR tracks. To register, email: greenbeltnews@aol.com.
Hike Leader: Jean McDermott, 631-599-2391.

Pop-up Pond Exhibit
2025-10-05 13:00 - 15:30 | SOFO
Join us for the last pond life exhibit of 2025 and discover the amazing tiny life that helps our friends the frogs, turtles, salamanders, and birds.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes, SOFO Environmental Outdoor Education Specialist
This FREE outdoor exhibit is for all ages. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Fall Beach Walk
2025-10-05 11:00 - 12:30 | Hampton Bays
Join SOFO for a fall beach walk! Let’s explore the wrack line, learn about the shells we find, and learn about our local beach finds! Rain or shine, severe weather cancels.
Program Leader: Rebecca Rogers, SOFO Environmental Educator
This program is for all ages.
For non-members, there is a $15 fee for adults and a $10 fee for children for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

How to Plant Milkweed and Butterfly Weed to Attract Butterflies to Your Garden
2025-10-04 11:00 | SOFO
Support your local butterflies and other bugs by planting your very own milkweed plants! After learning a little about why these plants are so important for our native pollinators, plant some seeds of your own to take home with you and help your garden flourish!
Program Leader: Moe Kennedy, SOFO Environmental Educator
This program is for adults, teens, and children ages 5+.
For non-members, there is a $15 fee for adults and a $10 fee for children for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

Birding for Beginners
2025-10-04 10:30 | SOFO
Explore Birding as a new hobby: Take a walk with volunteer docents Cindy & Dave in the Vineyard Field behind the Museum and learn how to identify the birds that we might find, including blue jay, black-capped chickadee, starling, northern mockingbird and red-tailed hawk. Listen to the voices and observe the behavior of the birds to help identify them. No prior experience required. Bring binoculars if you have them.
Walk Leaders: Cindy Lenkiewicz and Dave Polek, SOFO Docents
This FREE program is for adults, teens, and children ages 10+. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Storytime: Remarkable Reptiles
2025-09-28 13:30, 2025-09-28 10:30 | SOFO
Join us for some fun stories to learn about our reptile neighbors and learn some cool facts about SOFO’s resident reptiles, from our smallest lizard to our largest turtle.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes, SOFO Environmental Outdoor Education Specialist
This program is for children ages 3-7.
For non-members, this program is included in the museum admission fee. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

Join Us for a Beach Clean Up to Celebrate World Clean & Green Week
2025-09-27 11:00
World Clean & Green Week is a global effort to keep our planet clean by reducing waste and eliminating environmental pollution. Help SOFO celebrate World Clean & Green Week by cleaning one of our local beaches! During the beach clean-up, we’ll document what waste we find, and then we’ll report the data to the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society to contribute to their research efforts.
Program Leader: Moe Kennedy, SOFO Environmental Educator
This FREE program is for adults, teens, and children ages 5+. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

Young Environmentalists Society (YES!) Meeting
2025-09-27 10:30
SOFO’s Young Environmentalists Society (YES!) is led by Mare Dianora, an interdisciplinary artist whose practice involves building community and creating connections to home and place. YES! is open to young environmentalists, aged 10-16 and Junior members ages 5-9, who want to help prevent climate change as they discuss various challenges and ideas that can impact our precious environment. The program includes guest speakers and field trips and explores topics such as climate change, aquaculture, environmental career goals, water conservation, local ecology, and more.
Club Leader: Mare Dianora, an educator and the mother of two young sons, is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice involves building community and exploring connections to home and place.
This is a FREE program, thanks to the generosity of a foundation that prefers to remain anonymous. The date may change for this program. Please contact SOFO at (631) 537-9735 or info@sofo.org for up-to-the-minute information. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

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Printing with the Sun!
2025-09-21 11:00 | SOFO
Developed in 1842, cyanotype printing is one of the oldest photographic processes. A chemical reaction between ferric ammonium citrate, potassium ferricyanide, and UV (sun) light creates a beautiful “Prussian Blue” print that cyanotypes are famous for. Don’t worry, the (non-toxic) solutions are mixed and applied to the paper beforehand, so all you need to do is place your materials on the paper, put it in the sun, and rinse the paper in water! Feel free to bring any of your own findings from nature to print, but pressed flowers will be provided! $5 materials fee.
Program Leader: Rebecca Rogers, SOFO Environmental Educator
This program is for adults, teens, and children ages 5+.
For non-members, there is a $15 fee for adults and a $10 fee for children for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

Bird Walk at Shadmoor State Park
2025-09-21 10:00 - 11:30 | Montauk
Take a walk with the Montauk Library Bird Club, led by Frank Quevedo, Executive Director of the South Fork Natural History Museum & Nature Center. Observe and learn to identify birds throughout a variety of habitats, including woodland, grassland, wetland, and ocean species of Shadmoor State Park. The walk will be a moderate-paced hike along well-maintained trails. Parking is free. Please wear tick protection and bring water. All experience levels are welcome. A limited number of binoculars will be available to borrow.
Co-sponsored by Montauk Library and SOFO.
The program is FREE but registration is required.

Sign Up Here!

Young Birders Club Meeting
2025-09-20 10:00 - 11:00
Birding is a great way to make new friends, learn about the environment, and get outdoors. Join our Young Birders Club! The Club meets at 10AM on the third Saturday of every month and is open to anyone ages 8 to 18 who is interested in learning about birds. Since Long Island has many great habitats that are home to a wide variety of species, we concentrate on birding in local areas.
Please bring binoculars if you have them (we will have a few pairs to lend) and a field guide to birds of the eastern United States. If you don’t have a field guide, we’ll have one here for you to use.
Club Leader: Aidan Perkins, Wildlife Biologist
This FREE program is for ages 8-18. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

MUSEUM CLOSED: Outreach Event
2025-09-20

SOFO’s East End Outdoor Nature Education with Crystal at Old Ponquogue Bridge, Hampton Bays
2025-09-19 13:00 - 15:00 | Hampton Bays
Please note: this program was moved from September 16 to September 19.
At high tide or low tide, the salt marsh next to old Ponquogue Bridge is a great place to explore and meet your marine neighbors of Shinnecock Bay.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes has worked as an environmental educator at SOFO since 2005 and part-time since 2019 after her son Wyatt was born. Wyatt and I look forward to meeting you and learning with you!
There is a $10/child fee (participating adult included) for this program. This program fee will also provide non-members with free admission to the museum on a day of their choice. Members are free. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!

MUSEUM CLOSED: School Group (10 am - 1 pm)
2025-09-15 10:00 - 13:00

Pop-Up Pond Life Exhibit
2025-09-14 13:30 - 16:00 | SOFO
Discover the amazing tiny life in a pond, an important part of the web of life that helps our friends the frogs, turtles, salamanders, and birds.
Program Leader: Crystal Possehl-Oakes, SOFO Environmental Outdoor Education Specialist
This FREE program is for all ages. Advanced reservations are required for all events.

Sign Up Here!
