Last updated: October 10, 2026
This page explains what the Nature’s Reef & Reptile website collects, why we collect it, how long we keep it and who else can see it. The short version: the site collects very little, we use it only to answer you, and we never sell it.
Who we are
This website belongs to Nature’s Reef & Reptile, a reptile and aquarium store in Richmond Hill, Queens. In this policy, “we”, “us” and “our” mean the store. You can reach us here:
Nature’s Reef & Reptile
124-11 Jamaica Ave, Jamaica, NY 11418
What we collect when you send a form
The site has three forms: Ask about an animal, Send us a message, and Plan a visit. They only collect what you type in, plus the page you sent it from. Depending on the form, that can include:
- Your name
- Your phone number, your email address, or both
- The best way to reach you
- The animal or product you’re asking about, if you add one
- For a visit request, your preferred day, time and what you’d like to do
- Your message or question
- The web address of the page the form was on, and the time it was sent
Each message is saved privately in the site’s WordPress dashboard. Then it’s emailed to the store so we can answer you. The forms never send automatic emails to you, so you won’t get newsletters or auto-replies from the site.
How the forms keep out spam
To stop spam, the forms run a few quiet checks. First, they note how long the page was open before you pressed send. Next, they count how many messages come from one internet connection. For that count, the site stores only a scrambled (hashed) form of your IP address, not the address itself, and it clears the count after one hour.
A message that looks like spam isn’t thrown away. Instead, it’s saved and held for the store to review, so a real question still reaches us. Forms filled in by bots, which fill a hidden field people never see, are discarded.
The store can also turn on Cloudflare Turnstile, an extra spam check. If it’s on, a small check from Cloudflare loads with the form, and the site passes your IP address to Cloudflare to verify it. Cloudflare handles that under its own privacy policy.
What we collect when you browse
Cookies
WordPress, the software this site runs on, doesn’t set tracking cookies for visitors. It sets login cookies only for the store’s own logged-in admins. Our fonts and our map are stored on our own server, so they don’t load anything from Google.
After you send a form, the thank-you page keeps a small note in your browser tab’s session storage, so the same message isn’t counted twice. Your browser clears it when you close the tab.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics runs only if the store adds an Analytics ID in the site’s settings. If there’s no ID, nothing is sent to Google Analytics. If it is on, it still waits until you interact with the site, for example by scrolling, tapping, pressing a key or sending a form.
Once it loads, Google Analytics uses cookies to count visits. It records things like the pages you view, your device and browser type, and your general location, which Google works out from your IP address. The site also counts a few actions, such as taps on the call, directions, Ask about an animal and Plan a visit links, and when a form is sent. Those counts note which link was used and on which page. They never include what you typed into a form.
Google handles this data under its own privacy policy. If the store ever loads analytics another way, for example through Google Tag Manager, the same actions are counted there instead.
YouTube videos
Some pages show a video from YouTube. Nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. Then the video loads from youtube-nocookie.com, YouTube’s privacy-enhanced mode. From that point, YouTube, which Google owns, can collect information under Google’s privacy policy.
Server records
Like any website, the company that hosts our site may keep basic technical records of each visit, such as your IP address, browser type, the page requested and the time. Hosts use these records to keep the site running and secure.
Links to other sites
Our pages link to other sites, such as Google Maps for directions, Google reviews, Instagram, Facebook and Yelp. When you follow one of those links, you leave our site. Those sites have their own privacy policies, and we don’t control what they collect.
How we use your information
- To answer your question or message, by calling or emailing you back about it
- To get back to you about a visit request and confirm it with you before your visit
- To keep spam out of our inbox
- If analytics is on, to see which pages help people and fix the ones that don’t
We use your phone number and email only to answer your request. So we never use form details for marketing, we don’t add you to a mailing list, and we never sell or rent your information to anyone.
How long we keep it
- Form messages saved on the site: deleted automatically after 24 months. This is the site’s default setting, and if the store changes it, we’ll update this page.
- Emailed copies: each message is also emailed to the store, and that copy stays in our inbox until we delete it.
- The spam count: cleared after one hour.
- Analytics data: kept by Google for the period set in the store’s Google Analytics account.
- The thank-you note in your browser: cleared when you close the tab.
Who we share it with
We share your information only with the services that run the site for us, and only so they can do that job:
- Our hosting provider, which stores the website, including saved form messages, on its servers.
- Our email providers. The site sends form messages through an email sending service, and they arrive in the store’s Gmail inbox, which Google runs.
- Google, if Google Analytics is on.
- Cloudflare, if the Turnstile spam check is on.
Beyond that, we would only share your information if the law requires it. We never sell it.
Your choices
You can ask to see the messages you’ve sent us through the site, or ask us to delete them. Just email or call us, using the contact details at the top or bottom of this page. We use WordPress’s built-in privacy tools to find, export or erase messages linked to your email address. Because of that, we may ask you to confirm the request from that email address first. If you only gave us a phone number, tell us the name and number you used, and we’ll find your message by hand.
You can also limit analytics yourself. For example, you can block cookies in your browser, browse in a private window, or install Google’s Analytics opt-out add-on. The site works the same either way.
Finally, you never have to use a form. You can call us, or simply come in. Walk-ins are always welcome, and our Visit & Contact page has the hours and directions.
How we protect it
Saved form messages are private. Only the store’s own WordPress accounts that manage messages can see them, and they never appear on the public site. Still, no website or email system is perfectly secure, so please don’t send passwords, payment card numbers or other sensitive details through our forms.
Children
This site isn’t directed to children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect information from them. If you think a child has sent us a message, contact us and we’ll delete it.
Changes to this policy
If the site changes what it collects or how it uses it, we’ll update this page and the “Last updated” date at the top. Then the new version applies from that date.
Questions
Questions about this policy or your information? Call or email us, or ask us in the store.