 The Marin Islands sit off of San Rafael along the Marin County shoreline of San Francisco Bay. The two small islands and surrounding tidelands, protected by the Marin Islands National Wildlife Refuge and State Ecological Reserve, support one of the largest egret and heron rookeries in northern California. West Marin Island, the smaller of the two, provides nesting habitat for great egrets, snowy egrets, great blue herons, black-crowned night-herons, western gulls and ravens. Its neighbor, East Marin Island, was once used as a vacation retreat and has been overrun with invasive species including Scotch broom, fennel, and eucalyptus. However, the larger island still provides valuable nesting material for the rookery next door.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service manages the Marin Islands, and are now in the process of creating a long-term management and restoration plan for the islands. Save The Bay is working in partnership with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to educate the public about the unique history and ecology of the islands and involve community volunteers inhabitat restoration and stewardship activities. Together both groups funded a Revegetation Plan for East Marin Island, which was completed in November 2004 by Peter Baye and Associates.
While the islands are normally off-limits to the public, Save The Bay has been leading monthly kayak trips to East Marin Island where volunteers are helping with removal of non-native plants such as French broom and fennel, in preparation for future native revegetation activities.
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