Pismire Island Explained

Pismire Island
Map:Michigan
Location:Lake Michigan
Coordinates:45.7683°N -85.4453°W
Area M2:10000
Elevation Ft:581
Country:United States
Country Admin Divisions Title:State
Country Admin Divisions:Michigan
Country1 Admin Divisions Title:County
Country1 Admin Divisions:Charlevoix County
Country2 Admin Divisions Title:Township
Country2 Admin Divisions:St. James Township
Population:Uninhabited

Pismire Island is a small island in Lake Michigan of approximately in size.[1] It is part of the Beaver Island archipelago, the Michigan Islands National Wildlife Refuge, and the Michigan Islands Wilderness Area. It is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a satellite of the Seney National Wildlife Refuge. It is located in St. James Township, Charlevoix County, Michigan.[2]

Lying approximately northeast of the harbor of St. James on Beaver Island, Pismire Island is a tiny triangle of glacial gravel. It contains almost no permanent vegetation and is best known as a breeding place for Lake Michigan birds. The island was preserved for public use as part of the creation of the Michigan Islands NWR in 1943, and was designated as wilderness in 1970.

The word pismire means ant,[3] referring to the island's tiny size.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Feature Detail Report for: Pismire Island . USGNIS . U.S. Department of the Interior . 30 December 2020.
  2. Book: 2002. Michigan Atlas and Gazetteer (10th ed.). DeLorme. Yarmouth, Maine. 93.
  3. Entry for pismire. The Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition. John Simpson and Edmund Weiner (editors). Clarendon Press, 1989. .