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The mining activity caused the pelicans to temporarily abandon
Gunnison Island as a nesting site, though the gulls remained despite the human company. Because of the difficulty of obtaining the guano, however, and its tendency to dissolve in the rain and wash back into the Great Salt Lake, the guano
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View looking south from the peak at the northern end of
Gunnison Island. Carrington Island is in the immediate distance. Notice the red water, which characterizes of the northern arm of the Great Salt Lake. Also notice the large number of nesting American pelicans along the shore of the bay on the
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Historically, the island's remote location protected it from predators, which made it an ideal spot for ground-nesting birds. However, due to recent low lake levels, it is no longer an island; it is connected to shore by a land bridge which predators can use.
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Wildlife biologists estimate that the population on
Gunnison Island (about 10,000) constitutes about 10–20% of the entire American white pelican population; there are also about 15,000 California gulls that nest on the island.
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spent a year living in solitude on the island. From
November 1895 to March 1896, he was alone. In March, a few enterprising individuals decided to harvest and sell the abundant
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The entire island is the
Gunnison Island State Wildlife Management Area. Access to the island is restricted to prevent curious tourists from disturbing the nesting birds.
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flows into the Great Salt Lake. In the bird refuge, the water's salinity is low enough that fish can live there. (The Great Salt Lake contains no fish.)
306:, which he authored during his time on the island. Lambourne left the island early in the winter of 1896 along with the first group of guano sifters.
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The remoteness also forces the pelicans to travel 30 miles (48 km) or more to find fresh water and food. The pelicans typically fly east to the
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and about 6 miles (9.7 km) east from the lake's western shore, and is best known as an important rookery for the
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350:"Recent Observations on the White Pelican on Gunnison Island, Great Salt Lake, Utah"
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302:. Lambourne included musings about these guano sifters in his work
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190:) also nests on the island, and occasional nesters include the
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to a great height, then coast down to their destination.
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industry was abandoned about ten years after it began.
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The Origin of
Certain Place Names in the United States
170:, approximately 55 miles (89 km) northwest of
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399:R657-15 — Closure of Gunnison, Cub and Hat Islands
256:The pelicans have also been known to fly south to
348:Jessop B. Low; Lee Kay; D. I. Rasmussen (1950).
387:Gunnison Island State Wildlife Management Area
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154:is located in the northwest quadrant of the
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515:Protected areas of Box Elder County, Utah
486:(on official Utah History to Go website)
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298:that the nesting birds left behind as
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419:, The Great Salt Lake Page for Kids.
290:In the mid-1890s, artist and author
500:Landforms of Box Elder County, Utah
459:"Guano Sifters on Gunnison Island,"
431:, 1984. Utah State Wildlife Policy.
404:Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
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93:4.8 km (1.9 sq mi)
484:Guano Sifters on Gunnison Island
447:. Govt. Print. Off. p. 146.
272:Gunnison Island was named after
247:Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
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520:Uninhabited islands of Utah
233:western side of the island.
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457:Lyndia Carter (June 1996)
180:Pelecanus erythrorhynchus
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109:0.5 mi (0.8 km)
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441:Gannett, Henry (1905).
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176:American white pelican
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220:Salpinctes obsoltetus
101:1 mi (2 km)
28:Gunnison Island, 1891
505:Lake islands of Utah
330:Promontory Mountains
283:and surveyor of the
429:Utah Code Annotated
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464:2013-10-16 at the
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188:Larus californicus
74:41.339°N 112.858°W
389:. stateparks.com.
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287:valley in 1849.
274:John W. Gunnison
192:great blue heron
160:Box Elder County
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77: /
65:112°51′29″W
53:Coordinates
494:Categories
336:References
300:fertilizer
251:Bear River
62:41°20′20″N
258:Utah Lake
216:rock wren
144:Box Elder
38:Geography
462:Archived
417:Mr. Hall
314:See also
281:explorer
278:American
262:thermals
43:Location
374:4080923
354:The Auk
268:History
214:), and
182:). The
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140:County
98:Length
370:JSTOR
296:guano
276:, an
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106:Width
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164:Utah
134:Utah
90:Area
362:doi
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