The Houston Sierra Club (HSC) is interested in wildlife issues in our region.  We have a wildlife issue that is near us that if successfully addressed will preserve and expand protection for many wading and water birds in Southeast Texas.

These birds include Great, Snowy, and Cattle Egrets, Little Blue, Great Blue, and Tri-colored Herons, Double-crested and Neotropic Cormorants, White and Brown Pelicans, various ducks, and other birds. They roost, perch, and nest on a small island in Lake Conroe.  Bald Eagles frequent the area and provide a majestic sight when circling above the lake and the island.

This small island is called “Bird Island”, which is just west of the Seven Coves Community, and lies in Lake Conroe.  While this island exists, it’s down from 6 acres to ½ acre due to erosion from lake waves, boat wakes, and storm waves.

Madi Bullock, who has lived most of her life in Seven Coves, first noticed this erosion in 2015.  She fishes and watches birds and enjoys observing wildlife. This is her passion. 

Now 11 years later, with a degree in Animal Science from Sam Houston State University, she has turned her talents toward saving “Bird Island”.  Madi remembers when the island was larger and there were more birds.  Now there’s a 6-foot bluff with a few trees and shrubs and a long shallow water area with eroded soil that used to be “Bird Island”.

Madi is concerned about the safety of boaters that motor by “Bird Island” because boats ground in this shallower water due to the eroded island.  She wants to educate people about “Bird Island” and the need to enjoy it while they stay back from the island, so the birds aren’t unduly disturbed and continue to live in Lake Conroe.

For the past 5 years Madi has conducted an education campaign to alert people in the Lake Conroe area about the plight of “Bird Island.  She has a webpage, Facebook page, and frequents social media sites to share her passion and concern.  This has gotten some local, state-wide, and national press about “Bird Island” and its plight.

Madi has a concept about what needs to be done to bring “Bird Island” back to its 6-acre size.  She’s collecting information about costs and the technology needed to get the job done.

She recently created a non-profit organization, “Ripple Effect Conservation Initiative, and has her first board of directors whose focus is implementation of the “Bird Island Project” to preserve and protect “Bird Island” before it disappears.

Madi is engaged in planning for the “Bird Island” campaign and has reached out to many local businesses, many of whom have offered to help.  She is a deft organizer and a straight talker in her public relations and marketing efforts on behalf of “Bird Island”.

In the long-term Madi would like to see more education, preservation, and protection for all wildlife in Lake Conroe and would like to expand the number of people who are educated and enjoy wildlife while keeping human disturbance to a minimum.

If you are interested in the preservation and protection of “Bird Island” you can contact Madie at Facebook:  SavebirdislandonLakeConroe.  

If you want to help save “Bird Island” you can find educational material, blogs, a petition, donation space, and merchandise that when purchased all the proceeds will go to the save “Bird Island” campaign at: TxDockVibes.com. 

Birds are unique and valuable parts of our human environment.  Do your part and “Save Bird Island” for the birds and for you!