Little Galloo Island facts for kids
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Lake Ontario near Sackets Harbor, Jefferson County, New York |
| Coordinates | 43°53′09″N 76°23′43″W / 43.8858952°N 76.3952165°W |
| Area | 0.068 sq mi (0.18 km2) |
| Length | 0.38 mi (0.61 km) |
| Highest elevation | 253 ft (77.1 m) |
| Administration | |
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United States
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Little Galloo Island is a small, special island. It is located in eastern Lake Ontario, a large lake in New York. The island is near a town called Sackets Harbor. It is part of Jefferson County, New York. This island is unique because it is a protected area. It is one of the very few islands in eastern Lake Ontario where no people live.
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Where is Little Galloo Island?
Little Galloo Island is about 5 miles (8 km) from the New York mainland. It is also about 7 miles (11 km) southeast of the border with Canada. This island is part of a small group of four nearby islands. The other islands are Galloo Island, Calf Island, and Stony Island.
Plants and Animals on the Island
Most of Little Galloo Island is covered with grassy plants and bushes. You will find a few trees, mostly around the edges of the island.
Many different birds love Little Galloo Island! Ring-billed gulls have been nesting here since 1938. In 1990, there were over 84,000 pairs. This made it one of the biggest nesting spots in North America for them. The double-crested cormorant was first seen breeding on the island in 1967. Other birds noted here include the black-crowned night heron, cattle egret, herring gull, great black-backed gull, Caspian tern, and common tern.
The rocky waters and shallow areas near the island are great places for fish to lay their eggs. These fish include smallmouth bass, lake trout, yellow perch, white perch, brown bullhead, rock bass, and pumpkinseed.
A historian named Jeff Alexander once said that Little Galloo Island might not look pretty to people. He said its land and plants do not make it a place for tourists. But for birds, it is a completely different story. This means the island is very important for birds, even if it is not a typical vacation spot.
History of the Island
In 1823, a person named Elisha Camp received official ownership papers for most of Little Galloo Island. He also got papers for Galloo and Calf islands, plus several other islands. An old map from 1887 showed a building on the island. However, no buildings exist there today.
In 1998, a company called Phillips Petroleum gave the island to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). After this, the island was named a "wildlife management area." This means it is used to protect and help fish and wildlife.
Managing Bird Populations
The number of cormorants on Little Galloo Island grew a lot during the 1980s and 1990s. This happened because there was plenty of food. Also, efforts to control pollution helped, and the birds were protected by state and federal laws.
As the cormorant population got bigger, some people started to worry. They thought the cormorants were eating too many fish. This might cause fish populations to go down. Fishing and tourism were very important for the local economy. So, some people felt the cormorants were a threat to their jobs and way of life.
The NYSDEC worked to get special permission to manage the cormorant population on the island. A study started in 1998 suggested that smallmouth bass fish in eastern Lake Ontario were being affected by the cormorants. Local schools have also taken action to help bring back wildlife on the island.
