Gravel Island National Wildlife Refuge

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Gravel Island (4 acres) and Spider Island (23 acres) comprise Gravel Island National Wildlife Refuge. These islands are located in Lake Michigan, approximately one mile to the east of the Door County Peninsula of Wisconsin. Gravel and Spider islands were initially protected in 1913 by an Executive Order with the intent to preserve native bird breeding habitat. Herring gulls and double-crested cormorants nest on these islands. Gravel Island also supports a large nesting population of Caspian terns, historically the largest colony in the Great Lakes region.In 1970, the United States Congress de…