Scotch Bonnet Island is a small island inLake Ontario.[1][2] It is part ofPrince Edward County, Ontario, Canada.
The island is a low, bare, limestone outcropping, approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) off the western shore of theQuinte peninsula.[2] It is named afterScotch Bonnet Ridge, a nearby glacial feature, a north–south belt of glacio-lacustrine clay and till.
The possibility of operating alighthouse on the island was explored as early as 1844.[3] Funds were found to construct a lighthouse after the shipChristiana was wrecked on the island in 1851.
A traditional stone lighthouse was first erected on the island in 1856.[2] It was replaced with a steel navigation tower in 1959. Ownership of the island was transferred to theCanadian Wildlife Service in 1979, after theDepartment of Transport declared it surplus. Later that year it was named theScotch Bonnet Island National Wildlife Area.
Like other similar islands, the island is an important resting spot for birds migrating across the lake.[2] During breeding season large numbers of waterbirds, likeherring gulls anddouble-crested cormorants, raise their young on the island.[4]
In 2009, Scotch Bonnet Island was the eighth largest cormorant colony (896 nests) in the Canadian waters of Lake Ontario.
43°53′59″N77°32′30″W / 43.8997°N 77.5417°W /43.8997; -77.5417
