MEET THE

ANIMALS

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE ANIMALS

Long Island Game Farm is home to many exciting, exotic, and local species. A critical aspect of the game farm is serving as a sanctuary to animals that have been rescued, rehabilitated, or re-homed, including Sicilian miniature donkeys, alpacas, African Sulcatta tortoises, peacocks, rabbits, goats, sheep, alligators, our beloved Gomez, a sulphur-crested cockatoo, and Nala, an African Serval cat!

Learn more about these animals below.

African Serval Cat at Long Island Game Farm

  • More coming soon!

Alpaca Long Island Game Farm

  • Alpacas are a close cousin of the Llama. Smaller in stature and bred for their fleece, alpacas are docile animals that live and graze in the high fields of the Andes in South America. Alpaca fleece is woven or knitted together to make blankets, ponchos, socks, hats, scarves, and even coats. It doesn’t hurt an alpaca to be sheared for fleece – it’s just like getting a haircut.

    Like you, alpacas are mammals, meaning they are warm-blooded and give live birth. They are sociable herd animals, and like to have company. As grazing animals, they like to eat grass and hay but will chew on just about anything.

    Alpacas are part of the camel family, and can spit when upset. Usually this tactic is reserved for other alpacas. If an alpaca is frightened or upset, he will make a short, high-pitched bray. If an alpaca is excited or feeling friendly, he will make a clucking sound or hum. Be sure to wait until one of our zookeepers tells you it’s okay to approach any of the animals at the Long Island Game Farm.

Bison Long Island Game Farm

  • Bison, commonly known as buffalo, were originally found on the American prairie. At present, however, their range is very restricted. The bison is found in national parks of the United States and Canada. Earlier, when the population of this animal was larger, the herds traveled long distances in search of food.

    Today, one can see paths left by millions of bison hooves. The bison has a large head and neck and humped shoulders. Also known as the “American bison,” the bison is brownish-black, except on the hind part of the body, which is brown.

    Long, coarse hair covers the head, neck, and hump. The hair forms a beard on the throat and chin. The head has a pair of horns like those of domestic cattle. Some pairs of horns spread 35 inches at their widest point.

    A full-grown bull (male) measures up to 12-1/2 feet long, from the tip of its nose to the end of its short, tufted tail. Its height at the shoulders measures 6 feet. Bulls usually weigh between 1,600 and 2,000 pounds. Buffalo are grazing animals; their feeding behavior is similar to that of domestic stock. They feed on grasses and other ground forage.

    When bison were abundant, they influenced the ecosystem greatly. Their wallows served as temporary water resources for other animals. Through dung production they also contributed to creating the rich soils of the prairies.

    Buffalo live in small groups arranged by sex, age, and habitat. Males that are older and have a higher rank and breed more often than the other group members. Bison groups may be seen during grazing and traveling. They travel in a line. These animals make good swimmers and runners. Bison are capable of reaching speeds of about 38 miles per hour.

  • Chickens are domestic birds that cannot fly. There are over 150 different breeds of chicken and they come in various shapes, sizes and colors. The male chicken, known as a rooster, is larger and more brightly colored colored than the hen, a female chicken.

    Chickens have cones on their heads and two wattles under their necks. Roosters have larger combs compared to the females. Roosters make a very loud crowing sound usually very early in the morning but they can crow anytime of the day. Their loud shrill is a territorial sign to other roosters. They can also be quite aggressive birds.

    Chickens are omnivores and will feed on small seeds, herbs and leaves, grubs, insects and even small mammals like mice, if they can catch them. Domesticated chickens may eat a feed made up of a protein source as well as grains.

    Chickens usually live together as a flock and work hand-in-hand to to the incubation of eggs and raising of offspring called chicks. Individual chickens in a flock will dominate others, establishing a ‘pecking order’, with dominant individuals having priority for access to food and nesting locations.

    A young rooster may court his mate by clucking in a high pitch as well as picking up and dropping his food for her. When a hen becomes familiar coming to his ‘call’ the rooster may mate with the hen and fertilize her egg.

Camels Long Island Game Farm

  • Domesticated thousands of years ago by perfume traders, the camel went on to become the desert dweller’s primary source of transport, shade, milk, meat, wool and hides.

    They are still used in many parts of Africa and Asia today to pull ploughs, turn waterwheels, and transport people and goods to market along desert routes unreachable by motor vehicles.

    A fully grown camel can weigh over 1,500 pounds and reach a height of six feet.

    Camels have the reputation of being ill-tempered, moody creatures that spit and kick. In reality, they tend to be good-tempered, patient and intelligent.

    The ears of the camel are lined with fur to keep out dust and desert wind. Their thick eyebrows and long, curly, eyelashes also serve this purpose.

    These mammals need little water if their regular diet contains good, moisture-rich pasture. Although camels can withstand severe dehydration, a large animal can drink as much as 21 gallons in 10 minutes, an amount that would kill any other mammal. But the camel’s unique metabolism enables the animal to store the water in its bloodstream.

    Contrary to popular belief, a camel does not store water in its hump. It is in fact a mound of fatty tissue from which the animal draws energy when food is hard to find. The normal life span of a camel is 40 years, although a working camel retires from active duty at 25.

    During this summer season, guests can experience a personal encounter with the Long Island Game Farm’s very own camels. During this encounter, guests can feed the camels a healthy snack and take photos with them. The Animal Education staff will be there to answer any questions and to share interesting facts about these “ships of the desert.”

    *Please note: As our Summertime animals do not arrive until the weather gets warmer, our Camel Encounter is only available starting in Mid-May. To find out whether the camels are at LIGF, please check our daily schedule HERE prior to visiting.

Deer Long Island Game Farm

  • The Fallow Deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. It has a brown coat with white mottles that are most pronounced in the summertime. Variants that are completely white or completely black have been known, but are very rare in the wild.

    The Fallow Deer is over 4 feet long, with a 7-inch tail. It can weigh up to 220 pounds. Its antlers are broad and shovel-like. Its habitat is mixed woodland and open grassland. The males stay on their own and only join the females when in rut at the end of October.

    The fallow deer was spread across central Europe and Britain by the Romans. The Normans kept them for hunting in the royal forests. Since the 18th century, they were released into the wild for hunting purposes. The fallow deer is easily tamed and is often kept semi-domesticated in parks today, like the Long Island Game Farm.

Donkey Long Island Game Farm

  • The “helping hooves” of humankind, also known as the donkey, originated from the desert areas of northern Africa and lower Egypt. The first donkeys came to the Americas on ships during the second voyage of Christopher Columbus.

    For thousands of years, donkeys have been used as working animals, with only a small number of them kept for breeding and as pets. They were used to carry silk along the “Silk Road” from the Pacific Ocean to the Mediterranean, in Greece to work on narrow paths between the vines in vineyards and also as pack animals in northern Europe.

    Donkeys come in a variety of sizes, ranging in height from under 36 inches for the Miniature Mediterranean to 63 inches and up for the Mammoth Jackstock. On average, they live for about 25 years and can weigh anywhere between 280 and 1,060 pounds. They have many different hair colors, including grey, brown, black, a combination of brown and white or black and white and pure white.

    These mammals are herbivores, so their diet mainly consists of grasses, alfalfa, shrubs and desert plants. Donkeys are at their full potential when they eat small amounts of food over a long period of time.

    Donkeys also travel in herds, which makes them great guard animals. They can discourage an attack of any predator, especially canines. Herds of cattle, sheep and goats can always feel safe when traveling with a donkey.

Emu Long Island Game Farm

  • Australia’s largest bird—the Emu—is one of the most exotic birds in the world. The emu is the second-largest bird in the entire world, behind the ostrich. It belongs to a group of flightless running birds known as ratites. Weighing in at about 120-pounds and towering at six-feet tall, the emus are very large birds. Although they have small, vestigial wings (which prevent them from flying), they are quick runners. Emus can reach speeds up to 30 miles per hour when chasing after their prey.

    Along with their fast running capabilities, emus have an extremely strong forward kick and use their gigantic clawed feet as a defense mechanism. They are the only birds with calf muscles, which allow them to jump a staggering seven-feet in the air! This is a valuable trait, as they can escape a wide range of sticky situations in the wild. When emus run in migratory flocks, they have been recorded running exceptionally long distances— in Western Australia, emu movements follow a seasonal pattern: northward in the summer and southward in the winter. Some scientists think of emus as present day dinosaurs, due to their similarities in their bones and joints. Emus typically reside within grassy plains of Australia and try to stray away from forests, cities, and deserts as often as possible.

    Emus consume a simple omnivore diet that consists of caterpillars, grasshoppers, and plants. Depending on the season, they eat different plants and insects, in which they search for during the daytime. In the winter, they eat a ton of leaves and pods of Cassia. In the spring, they mainly indulge in beetles, grasshoppers, and sweet fruit. Sometimes, they even consume ladybugs, lizards, and ants.

    The emu has a simple feather appearance. When new feathers appear, they are black in color, but the strong sun fades them to a grayish-brown while the shafts and the tips of the feathers remain ebony. Emu feathers are less water-resistant than other large birds’ feathers. An emu’s tail feathers are not so soft—they are actually rigid and tough.

Goats Long Island Game Farm

  • The goat is a mammal that is related to the sheep. There are various breeds of goats that are native to the United States, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, as well as certain countries such as the United Kingdom, Turkey, India, China and Switzerland.

    They are known to have horns, various lengths of hair and distinct pairs of ears. Male goats, known as bucks or billys, usually have a beard. Female goats are known as does or nannies, and baby goats are known as kids. Both male and female goats have horns but most of the time, the horns are removed to prevent accidents.

    Goats are herbivores. They enjoy eating leaves, fruit and the bark of small trees. When those are unavailable, they will eat any nearby plants. (Contrary to what many people believe, goats do not eat tin cans.) They seem to continually chew their food, but what they are chewing is food that is regurgitated or partially digested, known as cud.

    Unlike sheep, goats can adapt to a feral or wild environment, even if it has been domesticated. In the wild, there can be up to 500 goats in one herd. The lifespan of a goat ranges from 12 to 22 years. Wild goats include the ibex and markhor.

Llamas Long Island Game Farm

  • Llama is a term used by the Peruvians to designate one of a small group of closely allied animals, which were the only domesticated hooved animals in the country prior to the Spanish conquest of the Americas.

    The Llama is a South American mammal. Related to the camel, but smaller and lacking a hump, llamas travel together in flocks, and can carry 50 to 75 pounds of weight over 20 miles on their back. If a llama is carrying too much weight, it will usually lie down, spit, hiss or kick at its owner until the load is lightened.

    Llamas are strikingly beautiful, with their elegant wool and graceful posture. They are gentle, quiet, curious and generous, and their wool has four different colors: black, white, brown and gray. Their neck and body are long and their ears are curved in a “banana” shape. Baby llamas are known as calves, adult male llamas are called bulls, and adult females are called cows.

    The lifespan of a llama can range from about 15 to 30 years. In addition, they weigh anywhere from 280 to 450 pounds and they stand between 5.5 and 6 feet tall. Llamas give birth standing up and newborns can weigh anywhere between 25 and 35 pounds.

    They are herbivores, so they typically only eat grass and ferns. To ingest, llamas regurgitate their food and chew it as cud. They chew each piece of food for a long period of time before swallowing to ensure complete digestion.

    They were kept not only for their value as beasts of burden, but also for their flesh, hides, and wool. In fact, llamas were used in place of the horse, the ox, the goat, and the sheep. Llamas are now seeing increasing use in North America as clothing-fiber producing animals and as guard animals for sheep herds, which they protect from coyote attacks.

    The skull generally resembles that of a camel, with relatively larger brain-cavity and orbits and less developed cranial ridges. The ears are rather long and pointed. There is no dorsal hump. Feet are narrow, the toes being more separated than in the camels, each having a distinct plantar pad. The tail is short, and fur is long and woolly.

    Many llamas are easily annoyed. If annoyed they make a clucking noise as they are spitting up stomach acid. The disagreeable habit of spitting in the face of persons whose presence annoys them is common to all llamas.

Lemur Long Island Game Farm

  • Black-and-white-ruffed lemurs are diurnal, most active during the day. They live in social groups made up of many males and many females, and the females are the dominate gender. Groups vary in size from two to 16 members, and these members can frequently change groups. They live primarily in trees and are excellent climbers and jumpers. They make sounds frequently, some to keep the group together, while others keep other groups away.

    Ruffed lemurs are the largest of the lemurs — about the size of a large house cat. The body is nearly two feet long from head to rump, with a tail equally as long. The black and white ruffed lemur’s fur is thick, soft and fairly long. There is a lot of variation in the amount of black and white fur from lemurl to lemur. But in general, the tail, hands, feet, shoulder, face, and top of the head are black; the back, rump, hind legs, and ears are white.

    The ruffed lemurs favorite food is fruit but they also have a taste for other food, including nectar, leaves, flowers, buds, fungi and soil. To find their food they forage in the treetops. If the food they want is out of reach from a standing position, they’ll dangle from their arms and legs in order to reach their snack.

    Ruffed lemur females give birth to litters of up to six infants (two or three is more typical) in well-concealed, well-constructed nests 10 to 20 meters up a tree. When traveling with her infants a mother ruffed lemur will pick up her young and move them one at a time in her mouth.

Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches at Long Island Game Farm

Parrots Long Island Game Farm

  • The term “parrot” is given to a broad order of over 350 birds. This order includes species such as the macaw, cockatiels, cockatoos, lovebirds and parakeets. Parrots live in warm habitats all over the world, and can be found in Central America, South America, Africa, Asia, Australia, and even the southern United States.

    Parrots can be identified by their curved beak and by the formation of their feet. All species of parrot are zygodactyls, which means that they have four toes on each foot with two facing forward and two facing backward.

    One of the more recognizable species is the Blue-and-yellow Macaw. These birds are easily identifiable, as their feathers are bright, vivid shades of blue, green and yellow. Blue-and-yellow macaws typically have bright blue wings and tail, a golden-yellow underside, and a green forehead. The macaws can grow up to 34 inches long, and weigh up to three pounds.

    Most parrots, including the Blue-and-yellow Macaw, eat a diet consisting of nuts, seeds, and fruits. Some species may also eat flowers and small insects. In the wild, many species of parrot can live as long as 80 years.

    Parrots are also widely known for their ability to “talk.” While parrots do not have the ability to form words or speech, they are skilled mimics and can quickly learn and repeat a sound. This is because parrots are very social animals. In the wild, parrots live in flocks and these flocks can include several hundred birds. Their vocal skills help the parrots communicate and keep track of the other members of their flock.

Peacocks Long Island Game Farm

  • Culturally, the word “peacock” is used to reference both the male and female species. However, technically, the peacock is used to only describe the male species, while females are known as peahens. Peacocks are large male birds, characterized as pheasants, resulting from the male and female species of peacock being visibly distinct.

    The peacock stands three to four feet tall, with their tail reaching up to five feet. They weigh 13 pounds and live an average of 20 years in the wild. The peacock has ornate and wildly colorful tail feathers that cover more than 60 percent of its body length. The feathers are filled with “eye markings,” that are colored blue, gold and red and are able to create an arch that stretches across from one side of the ground to the other.

    Peacocks are known as “ground-feeders” because they obtain their nutrients from insects and plants. They reside in India, Sri Lanka, Burma and the rain forests of Africa. Peacocks do not play well with domestic birds, although human beings have kept peacocks as pets for centuries.

Pigs Long Island Game Farm

  • Pigs, a part of the Suidae family, are large, omnivorous mammals with large heads and elongated snouts that exist both in captivity and in the wild. Male pigs are called boars, female pigs are sows and baby pigs are called piglets.Wild pigs have existed for 40 million years, originating in Europe and Asia. They were first domesticated in China approximately 6,000 years ago.

    Pigs did not come to the Americas until 1539, when Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto brought them over on his journey from Spain to what is now Tampa Bay, Florida. Now, pigs have one of the largest animal populations in the world, living on all of the continents except Antarctica.

    Newborn pigs are less than a foot long and typically weigh two to three pounds. Depending on the breed, adult pigs can grow anywhere from three to five feet long with weights ranging from 250 to over 400 pounds.

    Pigs are intelligent animals. They can be trained to do simple tasks and have great memories. Pigs have also been used in times of war to sniff out land mines on the battlefield.

    Pigs communicate by grunting and squealing in high pitches. Pigs are often mistaken as dirty creatures, but they are actually quite clean. They roll around in the mud in order to keep cool, since they do not have sweat glands.

Ponies Long Island Game Farm

  • Ponies, are taxonomically the same animal as a horse, with the difference found primarily in their height, conformation and temperament.

    When compared to a horse, ponies usually have thicker manes, tails and coats, as well as shorter legs, wider barrels, heavier bones, shorter and thicker necks and short heads with broad foreheads. Ponies are also known to be calmer than horses and exhibit high levels of intelligence, which makes them ideal of cooperating with human handlers and thus for pony ride sessions.

    Ponies are herbivores, meaning they eat grasses and other plant materials. They also have a keen sense of smell and an advanced sense of taste, which provides them with the ability to choose what they would most like to eat. Their lips then make it possible for them to sort even the smallest of grains.

    Their eyes are positioned on the sides of their heads, which gives them a range of vision of more than 350 degrees. Additionally, they are able to see very clearly in both day and night and, though they can see colors, they exhibit a colorblindness similar to that found in humans – where reds appear as greens. Ponies also have an elevated sense of hearing. In fact, their ears can rotate up to 180 degrees, which allows them to hear a full 360 degrees around them without having to move their head, but also raises the likelihood that they will encounter noises that will stress or startle them.

Rabbits Long Island Game Farm

  • The rabbit is a small mammal known for its long ears and big bushy tails. Although rabbits are originally native to Europe and Africa, rabbits can now be found across North and South America, and even in desert regions of the Middle East, where there is enough food and water for them to live on. Their fur comes in many colors: brown, tan, grey, black and white.

    Today, there are more than 50 different species of rabbit and that number continues to increase as the selective breeding of pet rabbits becomes more popular. They can grow from eight to 20 inches long and weigh up to 6.6 pounds.

    Rabbits are herbivores, with their main diet consisting of grass, but they will also eat nuts and berries, as well as some fruits and vegetables. In order to keep their food safe, they will dig burrows and store the food there. Burrows are also used by the rabbits to hide from predators — such as dogs, cats, foxes, snakes, large birds and humans — and to give birth to and raise baby rabbits.

    Grass is most important to the rabbit’s diet. Not only is the grass good for them, but it is also good for their teeth! Rabbit teeth grow constantly and if the rabbit is unable to gnaw on things to slow down the growth, their teeth can become extremely long, which can be very painful for the rabbit.

    Children enjoy being around rabbits because of their calm and quiet nature. However, many adults — especially gardeners and farmers — are not as fond of them because of the destruction they cause to the crops and vegetation.

Sheep Long Island Game Farm

  • The American Blackbelly sheep are a unique species due to their appearance—badger-faced with black facial bars as well as their breeding. They are a type of hair sheep and are actually a cross between Barbados Blackbelly with the Mouflon and the Rambouillet sheep. Typically, they are small to medium-sized and show a great amount of muscle in their necks and legs.

    This type of sheep have a stern look, with their defined muscles, dark color, and slick hair. The female Blackbelly sheep are referred to as ewes and the males are known as rams. They range in height—from 24 inches to 32 inches. Both rams and ewes have horns; however, the rams’ horns are distinct—long horns that curl up to 30 inches or even longer, as they mature. Rams usually weigh about 125 pounds, while ewes are smaller, weighing in at only 90 pounds. They all have a medium to thick-haired wool coat. Typically, they grow more or less wool depending on weather conditions.

    These sheep have large, bold eyes that are brown and almond-shaped. A black line runs from above the eye to the base of the crown. Black lines also run on the nose, forehead, and inside of the ears. American Blackbelly sheep have a light diet, which consists of grass, branches, shrubs, or even hay. Three quarters of their diet should be these items in order to keep their stomachs working efficiently. These sheep can reside everywhere, besides the frigid Polar Regions and are raised domestically. On average, American Blackbelly Sheep live for 13 years.

Wallaby Long Island Game Farm

  • Wallabies are members of the kangaroo clan found primarily in Australia and on nearby islands.

    Although members of most wallaby species are small, some can grow up to approximately two meters in length. Their powerful hind legs are not only used for bounding at high speeds and jumping great heights, but also to administer vigorous kicks to fend off potential predators. Wallabies also have a powerful tail that is used mostly for balance and support.

    Wallabies are herbivores, and the bulk of their diet is grasses and plants. Their elongated faces leave plenty of jaw room for the large, flat teeth necessary to chew their vegetarian meals.