Residents may not realize it, but the Cleveland area is home to a few protected nature sanctuaries that play an important role in conserving habitat for migrating birds and other wildlife.
That was the message Peter Deichmann, sanctuaries manager for Houston Audubon, shared during the Greater Cleveland Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Aug. 6. Deichmann spoke about Houston Audubon’s conservation mission and the organization’s growing presence in and around the Cleveland area, including its newest sanctuary, Peach Creek Woods Nature Sanctuary, a 128-acre property located about 10 miles southwest of Cleveland.
Houston Audubon is a nonprofit, accredited land trust dedicated to advancing the conservation of birds and their habitats throughout the greater Houston Gulf Coast region. National Audubon has assigned the organization responsibility for Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Waller, Washington and Wharton counties.
Houston Audubon owns and manages 18 nature sanctuaries totaling 4,307 acres, most of which are open to the public.
Deichmann said birds provide much more than beauty. They help control insect populations, pollinate plants and clean up carrion while also serving as indicators of environmental health.
He noted that scientists estimate North America has lost approximately 3 billion birds over the past 50 years due to habitat loss and other environmental pressures.
Texas plays a critical role in bird migration, he said.
“One out of every three birds that’s migrating in the U.S. every year passes through Texas,” Deichmann said, explaining that roughly 4 billion birds travel through the state annually on their journeys between wintering grounds in Central and South America and breeding grounds farther north.
As development continues across Southeast Texas, protecting remaining habitat becomes increasingly important.
“That urban sprawl is following I-10 West, it’s following I-10 East, it’s coming up 59, it’s going down those corridors, and there’s habitat here that’s available for the birds right now until we develop it,” he said.
Deichmann said Houston Audubon currently manages three sanctuaries near Cleveland.
The first is Winters Bayou Sanctuary, a 165-acre preserve adjacent to the Sam Houston National Forest. Open to the public, it features approximately three-quarters of a mile of trails, boardwalks and bridges winding through pine woods and along the bayou. Houston Audubon partners with the Texas Master Naturalists to help maintain the property.
The second, Damuth Woods Sanctuary, encompasses 628 acres south of Cleveland. It was donated in 1984 by Craig Damuth. While it is not yet open to the public, Deichmann said Houston Audubon recently received funding through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Recreational Trails Grant Program to build boardwalks and improve trails, with construction expected to begin this fall and winter. The sanctuary contains rare flatwoods ponds, wild blueberries and a diverse native plant community that supports a wide variety of wildlife.
The newest addition is Peach Creek Woods Nature Sanctuary, which was donated in 2025 by Thomas Maddux. Deichmann described Maddux as a teacher, conservationist and nonprofit volunteer who wanted to preserve the Piney Woods landscape as development spread northward from the U.S. 59 corridor.
“When he passed away, he left it to Houston Audubon,” Deichmann said. “We are honored and thankful that he thought of us and that now we can protect this piece into perpetuity.”
Although plans originally called for the sanctuary to open to the public by spring 2027, a new pipeline project crossing the property has delayed those plans. Houston Audubon is continuing to seek grant funding for parking, trailheads and other improvements before opening the preserve to visitors.
Deichmann encouraged residents to take advantage of the natural areas surrounding Cleveland, saying the sanctuaries offer opportunities to experience the Piney Woods while helping preserve habitat for future generations.
