Actually islands, especially the smaller ones in spring are bear magnets since that's where moose like to calve. The one that ate my gas can had an earlier fight with a cow over her calf.

After their argument, she saw me and stopped only long enough for her calf to catch up didn't care one bit I was standing on the path and just kept coming. She walked around my tent and right through the middle of my campsite, calf in tow. I just scrambled to get out of her way. She kept an eye on me with a wild look I'll never forget.

The bear followed them until it found me and decided to try his luck on something smaller. He didn't give up so I left the island and went a couple hundred yards to the closest mainland to repack and have breakfast. As I began unloading I see that darn bear swimming right towards me. So I load up again, grab a few rocks and paddled out for a meet and greet assuming he couldn't catch me in the canoe, I made it as unpleasant for him as possible. He had a bad morning overall. :P I figure I gave mama moose an hour or two head start.

Anyway... I walk around a lot. Dug up ant hills occur just as frequently on islands as mainland in my experience. I came across a shredded green pack on Rawn and a blue pack on Lookout Island (Pickerel) once and that's in the middle of nowhere. I think they don't really care how they get where they think a meal might be waiting.