Honey, black bear that lived at Holtsville ecology center, dies at 27

Honey, a black bear with a sweet tooth, helped teach generations of Long Islanders about conservation at the Holtsville Ecology Site and Animal Preserve. The 27-year-old bear died Friday, officials confirmed.

Along with a brother named Pooh, the bear was brought from out of state to the ecology site when only months old, according to director April Perry. Pooh died in 2019.

"We’re very grateful that so many people got to see Pooh ... and Honey for as long as they did," said Daniel Losquadro, the Brookhaven Town superintendent of highways, whose department oversees the ecology center. "Children have gotten the opportunity to feed those bears through the fence. So many children have had so many wonderful memories, even just seeing those animals up close like that."

The ecology center accepts abandoned, injured or illegally domesticated wild animals. Workers and guests were hit hard by the news that Honey had died.

"It’s a grieving process, really," said Kristin Layer, a caretaker at the ecology site who had worked directly with Honey for about seven years. "We’re with these animals every single day, more than our friends and family, and we do grieve for them. They become a part of our lives."

Layer and Perry recalled how the bear enjoyed sweet scents and foods. Staff would stuff logs with peanut butter or that sweet liquid for which she was named.

"She would get an exotic K-9 kibble as her base, then she would be supplemented with other fruits, a few vegetables," Layer recalled of Honey’s typical diet. She added that the bear also enjoyed eating eggs, chopped meat and pork — all raw — but her favorite food above all others were grapes.

"I’ve had people already come here tearing up grieving for her as well because they’ve been coming year after year after year to see these animals," Layer said. "They form their own connections with them."