A view of a beach in Plum Island in October 2014. The 840-acre island, approximately the size of Central Park, is home to the Plum Island Animal Disease Center as well as historic military structures and beaches, dunes, bluffs, cliffs, eelgrass meadows,and other tidal and freshwater habitats. It’s home to seals, ospreys, and peregrine falcons as well as many rare plants and animals. More information about Plum Island can found in the [intlink id=”plum-gull-islands” type=”post”]Great Gull – Plum Island Stewardship Area[/intlink] web page. Photo by Robert Burg.