Gunnison Island

The California gull (Larus californicus) also nests on the island, and occasional nesters include the great blue heron (Ardea herodias), common raven (Corvus corax), prairie falcon (Falco mexicanus), and rock wren (Salpinctes obsoltetus).

[4][5] 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.

In March, a few enterprising individuals decided to harvest and sell the abundant guano that the nesting birds left behind as fertilizer.

The mining activity caused the pelicans to temporarily abandon Gunnison Island as a nesting site, though the gulls remained despite the human company.

Looking south from a high-point on Gunnison Island.
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 western side of the island.