Key Facts about Lake Michigan

About Lake Michigan:

• It is the third largest of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one lying wholly within the United States.
• It is the fourth largest freshwater lake and the fifth largest lake in the world ranked by surface area.
• The lake is 321 miles (517 km) long (north to south); it has a maximum width of 118 miles (190 km).
• Drainage basin area: 45,600 square mi (118,095 square km)
• Lake Michigan is connected directly to Lake Huron, into which it drains, through the broad Straits of Mackinac.
  • This hydrologic connection through the Straits keeps the water levels of the two lakes in equilibrium, causing them to behave in many ways as though they are one lake.
• Water flows into Lake Michigan from several rivers in the 45,600 square mile Lake Michigan drainage basin, including the Fox-Wolf, the Grand, the Joseph, and the Kalamazoo rivers, among others. 
• The lake boasts a variety of natural habitats, including tallgrass prairies, wide savannas, and the world’s largest freshwater sand dunes.
• It hosts a wealth of plant and animal species, many of which are rare or endangered (such as the Hine’s Emerald Dragonfly and the Dwarf Lake Iris).