Bird Key is a barrier island in Sarasota Bay, south of the John Ringling Causeway, between mainland Sarasota and St. Armands Key. Originally a small barrier island connected to the Ringling Causeway by a tree lined causeway of its own, it was the home of John Ringling North, nephew of circus magnate John Ringling. Created by dredge and fill in the late 1950s, it is approximately 250 acres (1.0 km2) of one of the most prestigious residential areas on Florida's West Coast.