Banana River Facts
From Indian River Lagoon Project
Banana River Lagoon Quick Facts and Statistics
- Banana River lagoon spans 31 miles from Kennedy Space Center to Indian Harbour Beach in Brevard County, Florida. Merritt Island is on the west shore and the beach barrier island is on the east.
- 30,000 acre Banana River is the smallest of three lagoons in the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary.
- In spite of its name, the Banana River is not actually a river with a directional current, but a still water lagoon where the water's movement is provided by wind and some minor tidal influence near the inlets.[1]
- Northern Banana River Lagoon is jointly administered by Kennedy Space Center and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.
- Banana River has many resident West Indian manatees living in the lagoon year-round. During spring their survey count may reach 300-500 per day.[2]
- Since 1990, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has maintained a 10,600-acre No-Motor Zone in the Banana River between the KSC property line and the Beachline Expressway (SR528) for manatee protection.[3]
- Banana River lagoon supports the largest pelican rookery on the Atlantic Coast.[2]
- Florida Department of Environmental Protection maintains the Banana River Aquatic Preserve from the Beachline (SR528) southward to the tip of Merritt Island. [2]
- Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) Program maintains the 600-acre Ulumay Sanctuary at Merritt island's Sykes Creek in the Banana River Lagoon.[4]
- The southern tip of Merritt Island in the Banana River is locally known as "Dragon's Point" because a concrete sculpture named "Annie the Dragon" was located there until it crumbled into the lagoon during a storm in 2002.[5]
- Banana River was recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency as an "Estuary of National Significance" and placed in the National Estuary Program in 1990. The Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program is managed by the Indian River Lagoon Council, a special district of the State of Florida.
See Also
Web Links
- FWS - Merritt Island Refuge Fishing
- FDEP - Banana River Aquatic Preserve
- Brevard EEL - Ulumay Sanctuary
Documents
- FDEP - Banana River Lagoon Basin Management Action Plan 2013 (PDF 90pp 1.5MB)
- FDEP - Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserve Management Plan 2016 (PDF 262pp 25MB)
- Indian River Lagoon - An Introduction to a National Treasure (PDF 40pp 4.09MB)
References
- ↑ SJRWMD - IRL Fast Facts, retrieved: October 11, 2020
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Florida Department of Environmental Protection - Banana River Aquatic Preserve, retrieved: October 11, 2020
- ↑ FWS Merritt Island Refuge Fishing
- ↑ Brevard - Ulumay Sanctuary.retrieved: October 11, 2020
- ↑ Florida Today - Dragon Point demolition project begins on Merritt Island, retrieved: October 11, 2020
