Merlin S. Eltzroth moved to Corvallis in 1971 and earned a BS degree in Wildlife Science from Oregon State University in 1974. He specialized in non-game bird biology and was a volunteer in wild bird rehabilitation and protection, especially of hawks, owls, and other birds of prey. In 1985, he was instrumental in the passage of Oregon laws to protect all native non-game bird species and received honors from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for his work. In early 2005, he received the first Homer Campbell Award for conservation and the environment fromm the Audubon Society of Corvallis. He served as president of the Audubon Society of Corvallis and founded the Oregon Field Ornithologists and published articles and booklets about birds of Oregon.
Eltzroth retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1971 after serving in both World War II and the Vietnam War. He graduated from Ohio University in 1947. Merlin S. and Elsie K. Eltzroth were married in June 1943. Merlin was born in Philadelphia in 1922, grew up in Ohio, and died in Corvallis on October 7, 2005.
From the guide to the Merlin S. Eltzroth Papers, 1971-2005, 1983-2005, (Oregon State University Libraries)
