Otis Swisher and the Birds of Roxy Ann
The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was a rare sight when Otis began his surveys of Roxy Ann Butte in 1969. Photo: Jim Livaudais
In 1969, Otis Swisher began the Rogue Valley’s legacy of bird
conservation informed by science, studying the birds of Roxy Ann.
Roxy Ann was a wild place in those days—1,000 acres of city park,
covered in poison oak, and with a road closed to the public.
Otis’ eyes twinkled as he recalled the site, describing it as marvelous
for wildlife.
Otis chose Roxy Ann as a site for studying birds through bird
banding, because it, and Cherry Lane (about a mile south of Roxy
Ann), were the only places in Oregon at that time where Blue-gray
Gnatcatchers could be regularly found. He became the first
Oregonian to band gnatcatchers. In 1970, Otis’ records showed
four pairs of gnatcatchers on Roxy Ann, with two of the birds
banded. In addition to gnatcatchers, Otis’ data identified Roxy
Ann as an early host to Black Phoebes (quite uncommon at the time),
Black-throated and Black-chinned Sparrows, and Common
Poorwills.
When asked how Roxy Ann has changed in the last 50 years, Otis’ face
saddens. With so much poison oak and white oak removed, and
development all around Roxy Ann, he says that the habitat is not nearly
as good for wildlife. He hopes “large enough spaces for passive
recreation” and wild areas will increase throughout the valley.
Though he has seen so much loss of habitat, Otis is hopeful about the
future for local birds.
As a long time supporter of Klamath Bird Observatory, he praises KBO’s
work, saying that the science staff produces skilled banders who bring
an essential sensitivity to their work. Knowing that KBO works both
locally and abroad with international interns and training programs, he
is hopeful that the tradition of excellence in field ornithology will
be maintained and continue to spread throughout the world.
Though Otis is no longer banding birds, he is still active in
ornithology. He recently created an account here, with
Klamath-Siskiyou eBird, where he can continue to contribute valuable
data to bird conservation. KBO is incredibly grateful for the
data and strong scientific foundation that Otis set for our current
work in the the Klamath-Siskiyou Bioregion and beyond.
