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Roseburg Swift Watch Set to Return

The Roseburg Swift Watch 2021 & World Migratory Bird Day Celebration is returning on September 3 & 10! Location: Fir Grove section of Stewart Park behind the Umpqua Valley Arts Center off of Harvard Avenue Dates/Times: Friday evenings, September 3 & 10, beginning at 6:30 pm. Swift Watch: Vaux’s Swifts (pronounced “vawks”) nest only in Western North America, migrating to Central and South America for the winter. Each year, thousands of Swifts gather in the chimney adjacent to The Clay Place in the Fir Grove section of Stewart Park off of Harvard Avenue behind the Umpqua Valley Arts Center during their spring and fall migration. At sunset during migration, Swifts gather in the dozens, sometimes hundreds or thousands, to communally roost. Typically, these roost sites are, as here, old industrial chimneys. While numbers vary from year to year, the display can be spectacular. Umpqua Valley Audubon Society members will be available these two Friday evenings to serve as interpretive naturalists, with information and brochures about Vaux’s Swifts as well as more general information about birding and our natural world. Throughout the fall migration which begins in mid-August, Audubon members will be participating in a west coast wide data collection effort. We know Swifts have lost much of their natural habitat and the number of chimneys available for roosting and nesting is also on the decline. Little is known about even the most basic habits of Vaux’s Swifts, to say nothing of how many there actually are. Working in conjunction with our partners up and down the west coast, we hope to fill in some of the data gaps. World Migratory Bird Day: World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) celebrates and brings attention to one of the most important and spectacular events in the Americas – bird migration. Vaux’s Swifts are just one of the species which migrate seasonally in the Americas. Umpqua Valley Audubon Society is partnering with the Roseburg District Office, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to expand the annual celebration of Vaux’s Swift migration to highlight the need to conserve migratory birds and protect their habitats. BLM wildlife biologists will be on hand both Friday evenings with displays and information. This event is a partnership of Umpqua Valley Audubon Society, the City of Roseburg Parks & Recreation, and the Bureau of Land Management. Please maintain appropriate physical distancing and consider wearing a mask. For more information, contact Umpqua Valley Audubon Society at info@umpquaaudubon.org or 541-680-0436. Via Umpqua Valley Audubon Society Photo - Ryan Finlay