Location: Jamaica Bay, Brooklyn

Hundreds of rare birds and thousands of marine species thrive in the sheltered, swampy bay of the Jamaica Wildlife Refuge, which is protected by the National Park Service. Overhead, jets from JFK airport thunder by; but below, New York’s biodiversity is preserved in marshes and ponds, where birds like Snowy Egrets and Glossy Ibises snack on marine life. Not many New Yorkers take advantage of its beautiful paths, even though the refuge can be reached via subway (the Broad Channel station on the A, C line).