Sanibel's booming population

The University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research estimates Lee County's population grew by 6,556 people, or 1%, in 2011.

But when the Lee County Department of Community Development's newsletter broke down the bureau's population estimates by municipality, it provided this little nugget: The population of Sanibel grew by just one person in 2011.

OK, so we know Sanibel isn't a very big place. The barrier island was home to 6,470 people in 2010.

But remember that these are just estimates. Judging by increased traffic this summer, we suspect the island's population grew by more than just one person.