"I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief.
For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free." ~Wendell Berry


Showing posts with label purple martins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label purple martins. Show all posts

Monday, April 13, 2015

Springin' to Life


It is April 12th and I estimate that my Purple Martin Colony is now almost 1/2 full.  Last year at this same time, I had around 120 - 140 birds, but right now I have about 35 pairs (60+ birds).  But, it's not even half-time in Missouri yet!  The adults are still arriving and I have not spotted a sub-adult thus far.  In fact, if you're a new landlord in Missouri waiting for your first arrival this year, you still have plenty of time.  From my records, I can tell you that I've seen sub-adults arriving through the first week of June, so don't give up.  They seemed to arrive a little slower this year and I've actually been happy with that.


It is quite fun to watch the males fall all over themselves when they finally get a beautiful female to land and investigate the perfect home he has chosen for her.  It is truly giggle-inducing.  In his giddiness, his feet barely touch the porch  as he tumbles into the gourd, screeching to her from inside about his own wicked awesomeness in finding *THE* one.   It is quite hilarious when she takes off and he's still inside squawking away about where to setup her perfect nest and the couch.  Moments later, he will realize she has left and will poke his head out.  Lord knows what he's thinking when he finds her gone...after all that effort!
The females, on the other hand, seem to be quite in control and play the 'hard-to-get' part very well, sometimes acting completely uninterested.
Pick me, pick me, PUHLEESE PICK ME!
In the end, she lets him think he's in charge.  But we know who really is controlling their future here. :)

So far, my Great Horned Owl has not made an appearance and we are very happy about that.  I'll keep monitoring throughout the year, but we're pretty well protected now.  And when I say "we", I mean my martins and me.  I'm including Me - for my sanity and my love for my sleep.  The last 4 days have been very loud with the new arrivals.  Their raucous greetings, "Hey, how are ya?", and "HEY, I missed ya!" reverberate off the surrounding hills and my back porch and energize me every morning.
The landscape seemed so gloomy up until about a week ago.  But it has warmed up considerably and the martins are taking advantage by storming the racks and setting up territory.


Everywhere I look things are bloomin'.  It's amazing how much life springs forth with just a few days of warm weather.
Wild plum - one of the first native plants to bloom here in the spring.

I am so happy I decided to put out my mason bees last weekend.  While I haven't found one in the plum groves yet, I have been finding their empty cocoons.  And while my sinuses are not enjoying it, the honey bees are really digging all the pollen too!

Plum blooms and honey bees

Now we know where the idiom, "busy as a bee" comes from.


I don't have any idea what this flower is, but it's blooming too!

The Speckled Kingsnakes are on the move too.  This beauty decided that she wanted to take a shortcut across my driveway, through my lavender flower beds and across the yard to get to her old hunting grounds under my Butterfly bushes.
My Speckled Kingsnake decided she wanted to take advantage of the warm sun and move back to her old hunting grounds, under my Butterfly bushes, across the yard.  I let her pass unmolested - she will eat many mice, moles and other rodents which I don't want around.  Just keep movin' Missy - I should paint, "You SHALL NOT pass" on all my predator guards on my martin poles, just as a friendly reminder.  I've never seen her attempt it, but I'm sure a hungry one would.  Isn't she beautiful?
Dandelions
Even the Dandelions are beneficial to the bees this time of year.  I used to fight the war with them every year, until I realized their many benefits.  Now, we have an easy truce and I see their very fine flower petals everywhere and enjoy their lemony yellow, happy color scattered throughout the landscape.  How could I have ever believed these were bad plants??
Tree swallow pairing is in full swing. 
Tree swallows (TRES) are pairing up and in full battle mode, determined to take not only the boxes I dedicated to them (with the TRES slots), but also the blue bird boxes that I left with the 1.5" holes.  It is all-out war here between the two - may the best men / women win, because there's not much I can do to intervene.  The TRES are ferocious, but then again, they haven't met a truly agitated pair of Missouri bluebirds either.
These 2 pairs usually face off with Nikki and me as we walk past on our daily walks.  I think they would really like to pluck some of Nikki's fur for their nests.  It would probably help with her grooming.
Oh, how I love the sights and sounds of spring moving into summer!  It's energizing and fun to watch everyone get so busy.
I'll be hosting "Purple Martins and Coffee" again this year - 3rd Saturday of each month from 9 AM to 12 PM.  I hope to see some fellow Missourians then - and maybe we can do a 'walkabout', if you like!

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Spring-We Welcome Your Warm Embrace

It seems like it has been forever since we have seen a warm day.  'Warm' is relative though isn't it?  I was thrilled when the thermometer hit 42 degrees this morning and threw open the windows.  With temperatures forecasted to be rising to 64 degrees by next Thursday, I am preparing to deploy my mason bee tubes.  I have been cutting and rolling tubes for weeks now. 
It's also a fun project for kids to do.  I have 40 mason bee cocoons in the refrigerator that are 2/3rd through their food supply, so I'll be monitoring the weather very closely and checking out the wild plum and cherry trees to watch for signs of blooming.
On our way to 60 degrees today, I'm headed out to prepare both the mason bee housing and my purple martin housing.  Last year, my purple martins arrived on March 10th, and with warmer days now in the forecast, it's time to pull on my mud boots, trudge through all the mud and muck left by the melting snow & ice and put up their housing. 
For now, a few quick pictures!
Materials: Ruler, regular #2 pencil, scissors, tape, parchment paper (I also have a roll of unbleached parchment paper, not shown in this picture).  The pencil is the exact diameter for the mason bee holes.

40 mason bee cocoons, waiting for the right temps and food.

My holding can.  Arranging different lengths of tubes together presents a 3D effect is supposed help the mason bee more easily find her home.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Not Quite Yet

As of today, I only have 5 nests with young that have not fledged.  It has been getting pretty quiet around here during the day.  About 90% of my colony has left to start their migration.  I've been very surprised during the evenings when 6-7 nests of newly-fledged martins return with their parents to stay the night.  I counted at least 30 birds coming in tonight, with 7 new fledges cramming themselves into one gourd.  Hopefully, they've been told the stories and will keep the partying to a minimum tonight.

I have been fortunate this year with only 2 or 3 jumpers.  Without banding it's difficult to tell whether it's the same guy.  Actually, I don't know that I should call him a "jumper" so much as a "failed launch".  I had to chase him around the gourd pole twice in the rain and by then we were both soaked, so I put him in the garage until he dried. The rental price for anyone staying in my garage is to hold still while I take a photo.  He looks stubborn.  Almost defiant. Good.

With all the owl trouble and fledging going on, I haven't had much of a chance to keep up with nest checks and really thought everyone had at least left the Trendsetter.  So, when I saw an ASY male & ASY female martin entering house cavity #1 yesterday, I was surprised to find these four darling, 7-day old nestlings that will not fledge until around 8/5 to 8/9.  The mom & dad of these kiddos deserve medals for courage and bravery.  You've all seen the nighttime videos.  They lived it, yet they hung in there when the beast was shaking and beating his giant wings against their home, threatening to make a meal out of them, yet here they are feeding 4 little winged wonders!  Hooray! 
Speaking of my Great Horned Owl, we have not had an attack for 8 nights now.  Yes, a full 8 nights.  I can't even begin to express to you how happy it makes me to pull the cards out of the game cameras every day and find...nothing.  Nothing except normal, delightful daytime photos & videos of my martins flitting around trying to get their stubborn children to fledge.  Normal!  I do enjoy normal!


I'm not sure if the addition of Ellie Mae to my yard along with the radio & bright lights has kept him away, or my random visits at night with Ellie Mae, or just the fact that the noise level has significantly dwindled here over the last 8 days has caused him to avoid us or lose interest.

Whatever it is, I'll take it, but I can't really breathe a sigh of relief until the 4 darlings pictured above are winging south with their parents.  Until then, Ellie Mae and I will continue to be vigilant.  August sure seems like a long way away right now.

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Playing Chess Instead of Checkers

Make no mistake over this writing - I am extremely distressed over this issue, but this is how I deal with my distress - I write to make myself feel better. When I was a small child, my grandfather taught me to play checkers.  As I matured, he taught me to play chess and it was obvious that chess required a lot more thought, planning and strategy in order to win.  I loved it, especially the knights and bishops pieces as their moves were the more complicated and aggressive on the board.  I never became a pro at the game, but I learned a lot from it that I now apply to real life.

If someone or something presents a smart move to you, make a smarter move in return.  That's the way I feel about my dealings with this owl.  I'm still not 100% sure, but believe my owl to be a Great Horned Owl - one of the most aggressive owls around.  In chess, the best games are played against a knowledgeable, respectable challenger.  Well, I think I have met quite a respectable foe in my current battle to protect my martins.  They don't call them "wise, old owls" for nothing.
Great Horned Owl image: National Geographic Online
From the All About Birds site:
Renowned for ferocity, Great Horned Owls kill and eat small to medium mammals of many kinds, especially hares and rabbits. They eat mice, rats, squirrels, opossums, woodchucks, bats, weasels, and the occasional domestic cat. Great-Horned Owls also eat skunks, which are sometimes such a prominent part of the diet that both bird and nest may smell of musk. Although mammalian prey typically comprise more than three quarters of the diet, more than fifty species of birds have been recorded as prey. In addition to hunting small songbirds, Great Horned Owls have been known to eat large birds such as grouse, herons, ducks, Canada Geese, hawks (including Red-tailed), and even other species of owl. A woodland with resident Great Horned Owls usually lacks any other raptors in the immediate vicinity.
Well, that may explain what has happened to some of the feral cats that have been roaming around here lately.  If I were an owl, I would prefer a larger return for the amount of effort required to hunt - a meal such as a cat or rabbit rather than a scrawny little songbird.  What is it about my purple martins that makes him want to come after them so aggressively anyway?  Do they taste like lobster or some other special delicacy?
My first moves in response to the owl were to put up the wire fencing around my Trendsetter and the array of garden stakes around my gourd racks.  We had multiple days where the owl did not make an appearance, then when he did show up, the game camera pictures showed him using the tops of the racks as perches from which he was hunting for ground-dwelling prey.


Then one night, he upped the ante - I found a bent garden stake in front of 2 gourds, which I replaced with an even thicker stake. As the stake he grabbed was just out of view of the game camera, I was unable to see what had happened, but I did verify that the martins in those 2 gourds were safe & still feeding their young.  In response to his move, I decided to stand watch and wait for him and hopefully give him a good scare.  He flew through my yard at 9:10 PM on 7/4, circled to some trees and at 9:25 PM, he returned to perch on the perching post, 20' from my martin housing.  I flipped on all the lights, including my million-watt spotlight and ran at him, screaming a lot of words that probably shouldn't be printed here on my blog.  Regardless, he left in a hurry.  Despite my feeling of victory in the battle that night, I knew that the war was not yet over, but I still hoped I had provided him with something to think about before he landed here again.
As most of you know, he upped the ante again on the nights of 7/7 and 7/9, challenging the integrity of my wire cage on the Trendsetter and flushing out several martins.
http://kathyfreeze.blogspot.com/2014/07/caught-in-act.html

While these videos have indeed been alarming to me, I saw his increased aggression as another challenge to which I needed to rise and hopefully, respond with something even better which will perplex and discourage him.  As of yesterday, we had 3 peaceful nights with no owl attacks, but knowing that he is probably not done with me or my martins yet., I built a scarecrow and christened her, "Ellie Mae" before sticking her out in the yard to stand guard duty last night.
As I sat with Ellie Mae in the yard last night, I saw a large bird with a large pair of wings silhouetted against the southern horizon moving steadily northward toward my colony.  "Holy Moley - he's bigger than I thought - not tonight - you will NOT eat martins tonight!", I thought.  Grabbing my spotlight as I rose and tensing in preparation to start my own running, screaming, scary attack, I stopped mid-step as my eyes identified my attacker - and I allowed the Great Blue Heron to pass, unmolested by my colorful words and lights.  I did find it odd though that after flying another 5 seconds north of my house, the heron suddenly turned 180 degrees, emitted her own alarm calls, and flew back southward.  What had scared her?  Had she spotted my owl perched in a tree north of the house and changed course?  I'll never know.
All the game cameras confirmed today that we have now been 4 nights without any night visitors.
Whether Ellie Mae is helping or not is yet to be determined.  I'll move her around the yard to different spots, keep playing the radio and keep the lights on all night.  If anything does happen, I'm sure I'll be dismayed, saddened, alarmed and very, very upset again.  But I will regroup and deal with it.
For now though; "Dear Mr. Owl - Your Move". 

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Caught in the Act

I've been monitoring my colony pretty closely and even ran the owl off the perches on Friday, 7/4.  I had to leave for a business trip last Sunday however, so my husband was leaving the radio and porch lights on to try to keep him frightened away.  Upon returning today I pulled the game cards out of my cameras and was quite alarmed to find these two new videos of the owl attacking my Trendsetter.  I've had a lot of fledging going on this week, so I suspect he was after the new fledges that often hang out on these porches at night.  He obviously left empty-clawed but, he's definitely shaking up the tenants of the house.

This one happened early in the evening on 7/7/2014.  You can click on the YouTube icon in the picture and embiggen them for better viewing.

This one happened 2 nights later.

Looks like I'll be staying up late in the evenings until all the martins are gone now.

Saturday, April 12, 2014

The Incredible, Edible Egg Shell

After finding my purple martins raiding my compost pile two years ago and picking out the egg shells, I decided to start using egg shells instead of the crushed oyster shell that I had been offering for years.  With a 75-pair colony, I now save egg shells year round.  I sometimes feel like Forest Gump when I'm deciding what's for breakfast; fried eggs, boiled eggs, poached eggs, eggs Benedict and so on.  Regardless of the form they take, we love them and nothing goes to waste here in the Ozarks!  During the spring and summer, our local barn swallows, tree swallows, purple martins, blue birds and sometimes I think every other bird in the county comes to my egg shell trays to partake of the remains of my breakfasts!

The first year I started using egg shells, I visited one of our local restaurants to ask them to save a few buckets of egg shells from their morning breakfasts.  I live in the country, so the local breakfast joints are very small and full of old-timers.  I got some very strange looks and a lot of questions when I was asking them to save the egg shells for me and I noticed some of them looking at each other with a knowing glance as if to say, "she's feeding egg shells to birds?".  If you're not afraid of being categorized as *special*, your local restaurants are certainly a good source of a large supply of egg shells to get you started.

Eggshells are an excellent source of grit and calcium, but chicken eggs may harbor the salmonella bacteria so, I always wash and prepare the egg shells according to the PMCA guidelines here.  One of the most frequently-asked question this time of year is "When should I put out the eggshells for the birds"?  The answer is, "As soon as they arrive".


Left - my Tupperware freezer container; Right - 1 gallon Ziploc baggie full of egg shells.  After preparing the egg shells, I store them in the freezer all year just to make sure no bacteria can grow on them.
Why do birds need calcium?
Every female mother in every species on earth experiences calcium depletion of her body when giving birth.  It's no different for purple martins.  The female martins already have a tougher time than the males, often experiencing multiple copulations, egg-laying and finally, brooding the eggs for hours and days on end.  All of this will sap her energy and her own calcium storage in her bones.  The crystalline layer of her eggs (the shell), which is responsible for its mechanical strength, consists of more than 90% calcium in the form of calcium carbonate.  Calcium is absorbed from the food in the intestine.  Thus, you can see why she needs replacement calcium to help properly both form and strengthen her eggs and keep her own bones strong.  I've also observed my purple martins, males and females alike, taking crushed egg shells in to feed their young.
Providing birds with supplemental calcium helps them produce stronger egg shells and nestlings.

According to this reference:  "The diet of a particular species of bird may play a role in determining whether the species will seek supplemental calcium. For example, insects are low in calcium; therefore, birds such as swallows that eat primarily insects probably need to find additional sources of calcium. BCaP results suggest this is true. Although they’re not typical feeder visitors, 10 percent of the swallows that came to yards took shells."

How to Offer Supplemental Calcium:
You can offer calcium in either a platform feeding tray or spread out on the ground.  This site recommends the following: "The Lab's Birds and Calcium Project determines we should offer calcium on the ground and on platform feeders".
I tend to agree.  I prefer to offer them in a platform feeder for my martins as I once had a hawk attack a female that was on the ground eating egg shells.  He grabbed her before she could take off.  Fortunately, he dropped her when I ran across the yard and scared the heck out of him, but my lesson that day was to move their calcium up to a height where they could more quickly take off if attacked by a predator.
My tray is simply a drip tray from a plastic planter that I purchased at Lowe's.  I drilled multiple small holes around the bottom edges so that water can drain out.  Then I mounted a shelter over the tray so the rain wouldn't wash all the shells out.
Here's a video of my purple martins using the egg shells mixed with crushed oyster shells.

Egg shells are not the only source of calcium that you can offer.  You can also purchase 50 lb. bags of crushed oyster shell here in Missouri at your local MFA stores.  My last bag lasted me almost 3 years, but as I mentioned, my martins show a distinct preference for the egg shells.
Offering calcium to purple martins is listed as one of the potential attraction techniques.  Having a ready-supply of calcium nearby certainly can't hurt your chances of attracting them and it's a cheap and easy thing to do, so why not try it? 

Monday, April 7, 2014

Purple Martin Banding in Missouri - 2014

Since 2011, Missouri River Bird Observatory (MRBO) has banded over 3300 Purple Martins across Missouri, including St. Louis-Forest Park, Marshall, etc.  Of those 3300, 725 were banded at my site here in Licking.  While that number includes a few adults, the majority of the bands were placed on 11 to 24 day-old nestlings.  To date, I have resighted approximately 24 of those banded adults and returning juveniles as SY (sub-adult) birds at my site, along with one at a friend's site 6 miles north and one at my aunt's site located about 8-9 miles north.
One of many nestlings banded in 2013
Of those 24 resightings, some were seen again only one following season while a smaller number of them were seen at my site for multiple seasons now.  This year, due to multiple factors beyond our control, we have decided to not band any nestlings at my colony.  The good news however, is that I am now a licensed bander, sub-permitted under Dana Ripper at MRBO and I am planning a 2014 project to do some educational outreach and travel to some of the landlords' colonies whom I mentor around this area to band their nestlings.


As the martin flies, my aunt's place is approximately 8-9 miles from my site.
I think it would be interesting to find out how many of your birds are returning to your colony each year and how many are dispersing to other surrounding sites, such as mine.  There are some requirements that need to be met in order for me to accomplish this though and I will need your help and commitment if you are interested in having your birds banded.
It could take awhile for the bird to land in just the right position, but if a good quality photograph could be taken, it could be blown up on the computer to try to get a band reading.

First and foremost, I need to know if you will be willing to resight birds during the next martin season.  I will be honest with you and tell you up front that it does take some time.  The birds aren't always cooperative when you're trying to read their bands and many times, you find yourself in an awkward position in your yard (like standing-on-your-head-awkward) and chasing a bird around your site to get the reading.  But it can be quite fun and exciting when you realize this was one of *your* kids from last year.  I find it quite fun and relaxing to settle into a comfortable chair with a good quality pair of binoculars right smack in the middle of my colony and watch for bands (a good hat is a must-have for obvious reasons).  A spotting scope is a bonus and makes it even easier.  For landlords that are quite close to me, I would be willing to bring my spotting scope over to read the numbers on the band, once you have identified a banded bird at your colony.

Prerequisites for Banding:
1. You must have housing that can be vertically raised and lowered and opened so that you can perform weekly nest checks and which would allow us to safely get the nestlings down for banding.
2. You must perform weekly nest checks from the start of egg-laying.  Two reasons for this:  1) we'd be able to tentatively schedule the banding day by knowing when your first eggs would hatch and estimating when the nestlings would be at least 11 days old or older and; 2) we would know the location and expected number of nestlings in your colony that we could band.
3. As mentioned above, a willingness to watch your colony for bands in the 2015 season is required.

Please feel free to contact me at purplemartin@centurytel.net and let me know if you're a Missouri landlord who is interested in having your purple martins banded!

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Lending a Helping Hand

It has been getting dark here around 7:40 - 7:50 PM for the last few weeks.  Friday evening it was raining and I decided I better do a quick scan of the colony with the binoculars before it got too dark to see.  Sure enough, a female martin was stuck in the entrance on her back, beak pointing straight up to the skies, just lying there squirming. It had been raining for almost an hour.  I hate lowering the racks late in the evening, as it takes a while for the colony to settle back down and hawks or owls will quickly take advantage of the low light and try to snag dinner.  Fortunately, her wings were still inside, so I anticipated a quick, easy release. 
As I lowered the rack, I saw a female martin land on the ground in front of me.  She was soaking wet and unable to fly.  She tried to get airborne, but could not - it was the stuck martin that had gotten free and flopped out. After chasing her around the yard, I capture her and wrapped her in a towel, then raised the rack and everyone re-entered safely for the night.
She stayed in the garage overnight where it was 60 degrees, in a box with some old hand towels. 



Saturday morning, after a quick health check, I decided she was good to go, so I gave her a parting gift.  She became the new owner of MO Band # E818.  With her new jewelry securely attached, I released her.  She circled 4 times around the colony and landed on her rack, refreshed from her warm overnight stay and ready to do battle for *her* gourd once again.
My newly-banded female - E818, back on *her* gourd ready to fiercely defend her territory.
I was reminded once again that it is always a good idea to do a quick scan of your housing as your martins come in in the evenings.  They are fighting for territory and it's very easy for one of them to get sideways and even upside-down in an entrance-way, with a wing or both stuck and unable to free themselves.  This little girl was lucky that I found her that night.  At the same time, I'm feeling pretty lucky that she's at my site and has chosen me to look out for her.


As the day warmed up, I kept a close eye on that rack and I discovered that she had paired up with the male that was my first arrival this season.  Remember him?  First arrival at my colony in Licking. 

Now what were the odds of that?


Showing off her new jewelry to her new mate.  They now have matching jewelry!

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Purple Martin Numbers are Increasing in Southern Missouri

What a gloomy, gloomy day!
As I drove into my driveway at 5:30 PM Monday night , I noticed a flock of birds circling my site.  As I came closer, I noticed they were all purple martins.  I jumped out of the car to verify and to my delight, I was greeted with purple martin chatter as they started to dive down into the housing.

Over the next 10 minutes, I counted them as they dropped like rain and dove straight into housing compartments, their feet barely touching the porches.  I managed to count 35 martins, but I'm sure there were more.  Some of them - whether on purpose or accidentally - went into already-occupied housing and from there, hilarity ensued.  Invading, third-wheel females are treated no kinder than the extra males that accidentally enter a gourd where a paired couple has established residence for the year.  The growling inside a gourd indicated that a bird was about to be ejected and as the skies darkened, I carefully watched the shaking, swinging gourds to make sure a wing didn't get sideways in the entrance causing me to have to quickly lower the racks and help them free themselves before nightfall.
Some of the older residents of my colony will occupy the house first.


I observed 2 females and 3 males being thrown out on their ear and while their pride was wounded, physically they were okay and they eventually found an empty gourd where they could rest and stay warm. 

On Tuesday and Wednesday, some of the martins made their way to my "feeding tray" (which is really a piece of 1x10 lumber laid across the end of my deck rails) indicating that they wanted some food.  I put out crickets, but after taking only a few, they flew off.  That was very good news as it indicated to me that they were getting some food, even though the weather has not been that great.

My martins have learned that during cold, rainy weather when bugs won't be flying, they can count on the crazy Bird Lady of Licking to provide them with scrambled eggs and crickets.

Wednesday afternoon I stuffed 16 more gourds with Eastern White Pine needles and put them out on the racks.  I like to keep the number of cavities to a minimum at this point in migration, just in case the weather turns lethal and I need to put hand warmers in the cavities where birds are staying, but after seeing the additional birds arriving Monday night, I thought I should get more out on the racks.

As I lowered the East rack, I heard the familiar growling and saw a gourd shaking.  Since no one flew out when I lowered the rack, I carefully shielded the exit hole as I walked in front of that gourd and opened the lid.  There were 2 females, both in a defensive position, but neither was willing to budge from the gourd.  I had to wonder how terrific the male was that could cause these 2 ladies to become so embroiled in a brawl that they wouldn't voluntarily leave the gourd.  I carefully removed each one from the gourd and after doing a once-over to check for injuries and bands (there were none), I released them both.  One of the females was definitely older than the other, as indicated by how dark her coverts were.  She wasn't about to easily surrender her territory to the younger, pretty girl that was making moves on her man.

Last night, as I ate dinner I wandered over to the window and watched the martins returning.  By 6:40 PM, the resident female in the same gourd where I had released them earlier, had the younger female on her back with her right wing sticking out of the gourd.  Seriously, this male must be a prince or something as these 2 females were just not giving up their claim to that gourd!  I knew the younger girl wouldn't be able to pull her wing back in and extricate herself before nightfall so, I rushed out to help her.  A martin stuck in an entrance of a cavity can become owl-food or freeze to death during the night, so there was no doubt in my mind that I would have to run the risk of flushing the whole colony from their cavities that late in the evening so I could release this very determined, yet defeated little lady. 

After releasing the 2 females again, I was able to count all the martins as they returned to their nests.  I was able to confirm there are now 41 martins here as of last night.  With very warm weather predicted for this weekend, there will probably be many more arrivals as they start to push northward.  I'll be in my driveway with bags of pine needles and fill the remaining 33 gourds on Saturday and Sunday.  Anyone want to stop by and help? 

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Protecting Your Purple Martins from Owl and Hawk Attacks

Every year many purple martin colonies have to deal with the inevitable hawk and owl attacks and the losses of their martins.  Hawks and owls are both protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act therefore, only passive measures can be used to protect your colony.  Shooting, harassing or any activities that cause harm to these species is illegal.  

As colonies grow, so does the noise level as the martins sit out in the warm sun and socialize - loudly - with each other.  The pandemonium of 150 chattering birds competing for mates will inevitably draw the attention of any airborne predators in the area.  Placing your colony in the most wide-open area with trees at least 40 feet away, will help your martins escape most attacks.  However, the further the trees are from your colony, the better their chances of reaching safety quickly.

Dealing with Hawk Attacks
During the early spring, my colony is frequently attacked by a very fast, hypersonic Sharp-shinned hawk.  Many people find it difficult to distinguish between a Sharpie and a Cooper's hawk, but once you have observed both of them in your backyard, you will be able to quickly tell the difference between the two.  When my local Cooper's hawk arrives, she will claim the territory for herself and the Sharpie will leave.  That will present its own set of problems, but at least the Cooper's hawk is only capable of supersonic speed.  One year, the Sharpie attacks were happening so frequently that I decided I better come up with a solution before she inflicted too much damage on my colony.  

While watching my birds at the feeder one day, I noticed all the birds suddenly flush into the nearby brush piles and shrubs for cover.  I held my breath as my Sharpie executed a blistering attack, but still came up empty-clawed and landed on the branch of my dead cedar tree to regain her composure.
Sharp shinned hawk - December, 2012

Overcome with joy that she had missed breakfast, I opened the window, blew her a big raspberry and snapped her photo as she gave me the evil stink-eye.  As I watched her perching there, I realized that all the attacks on my colony had come from the tree lines on three sides of my property.  Even though the trees are over 150 feet away on all sides, she was still trying every trick she knew to grab a martin, coming in very low then suddenly popping up or under a tree to attack the colony.

Since the birds at my feeders tend to be much more watchful for predators than my noisy martins who sometimes get rather caught up in their social gatherings, I decided to setup bird feeders on the north, west and east sides of my property, right in the hawks' attack paths, between the tree lines and my martin housing.  The idea of this strategy was that the birds at the feeders would attract the attention of the hawk as he/she came through and would be distracted just long enough for the martins to hear the alarm and escape. 

As doves are purported to be a Cooper Hawk's favorite meal, I also attached dove decoys to the tops of each feeder and added shrubbery and brush piles nearby so the birds at my decoy feeders had plenty of cover to dive into, if a hawk attacked.  My plan worked.  The Sharpie and the Cooper's were both attracted to the activities at the feeders as they executed their attacks and since my dove decoys couldn't fly, they were attacked relentlessly. 
One of my dove decoys stationed on top of a bird feeder.  This feeder is 100' to the west of my racks and the tree line is 125' more feet to the west of it.  Nope, nothing fancy here - just a piece of wood, some electrical tape and a hapless dove decoy bracing himself for the next attack.
As an added bonus, the alarm calls of the birds at the feeders caused my martins to launch themselves into the air - a much safer place for them to be during an attack.

For added protection, I also added 14 purple martin decoys to the perches around my colony and I move them around to different positions when I conduct nest checks.  These decoys and the strategically placed feeders have helped immensely with protecting my colony.

Dealing with Owl Attacks

Owls are another challenge that Purple Martin Landlords frequently have to deal with.  Owls find martin colonies by hearing the martins vocalizing and making other noises at night in their nests. Owl guards must be placed on houses and gourds to keep owls from spooking martins from their nests or from actually reaching inside and grabbing a martin.  A Great Horned Owl (GHO) can have an 8-12 inch reach and quickly devastate your colony in a matter of 2-3 nights.  As a first line of defense, landlords can add tunnels to the entrances of each nest.  Larger cavities and/or extending the entrances will also help protect your martins from other aerial predators such as accipiter hawks, falcons, crows and even Blue Jays.  Check out this article on how to modify your housing if you are experiencing owl attacks on your colony.
http://www.purplemartin.org/forumarchives/archive/Owlreach.htm
You can also add hardware cloth cages to any housing or gourd racks.  Ideas and pictures are described in these linked posts / articles:
http://www.purplemartin.org/update/Mod.html
And more pictures and ideas from the PMCA Forum:
http://purplemartin.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21912&highlight=aprils+owl+guards

After losing 20+ birds to owl predation in 2012, Jerry, one of my landlord friends here in Missouri, got very creative and came up with his own homemade ideas and has offered to share his pictures and the descriptions of his materials in his creations below.

In 2012, Jerry Heitman in Troy, MO lost 20+ birds due to owls. In 2013 he estimated that he only lost 1 bird, after installing the owl guards pictured here.
These guards are made of # 9 fence wire and a 3" piece if 1/2" electrical conduit smashed around the wire.
Jerry's site with the owl guards installed


















Everyone's colony will eventually experience a hawk, owl, snake, raccoon or other type of predator attack.  The best line of defense is to ensure that you've given your martins the best chance of survival and the ability to evade these predators.  A hungry hawk or owl can wreak havoc on your colony, so it is best to be prepared in advance and establish a safe nesting site for our friends.





Answers to the Trivia Questions asked here:
 http://kathyfreeze.blogspot.com/2014/03/attraction-techniques-for-new-sites.html

1.     c

2.     b – According to the PMCA site, the average age for martins is 2-5 years, with some living 6-7 years; the oldest martin on record lived to be 13 years and 10 months.

3.     a – In 2008, researchers, working in collaboration with the PMCA, equipped 20 purple martins with geolocators (tracking devices, small and light enough for songbirds to carry).  They mapped their round trip journey from Pennsylvania to the Amazon basin and back – a trip of about 9,300 miles.  The birds' travel speeds astounded them. All flew two to six times faster during their spring return journey than in fall. One female purple martin dashed back north in 13 days at a speed of about 358 miles a day, shattering previous estimates for songbirds of 93 miles a day.

4.     d

5.     a, c, d – It is an old wives’ tale that opening a birds’ nest and inspecting the young or eggs will cause the adult parents to abandon the nest.  In fact, conducting weekly nest checks of your birds’ nests will help you correct problems that may save many fledglings who otherwise might not have survived.

      As the English house sparrow is a ferocious nest site competitor, allowing it to nest in your housing will either prevent martins from establishing a colony at your site, or will cause them to eventually abandon.  Any devastating attacks on your colony such as a raccoon or snake attack can also lead to abandonment of your site.

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Purple Martins Return to Licking - 2014 Season Has Begun

On Monday, March 10th at 6:40 PM, my first purple martin arrived.  He was outside screeching on the perch and I abandoned my dinner so that I could properly welcome him home.  He took to the skies and announced his arrival across the valley.  He circled and circled, telling me all about his journey and trying to find his friends.  Within a few minutes he had established that this was his home and he found and harassed an American Kestrel until it left his newly claimed territory.

Mr. C287 - can't sit still for long!


I couldn't tell for sure at first, as I had left my binoculars inside, but I noticed that his legs looked bulkier than normal.  After grabbing my binoculars, I confirmed that Mr. C287 had returned home!  This guy was banded by MRBO as an adult when he was captured in a gourd on 6/10/2012 with 3 other adult martins.  It was absolutely the highlight of our day to pull an ASY male and female and a SY male and female out of the same gourd with 5 perfect eggs that were completely unharmed.

This gourd has been claimed.
He was re-sighted at my colony last year on 4/15/2013.  And now he's back!  And making lots & lots of noise.

My 2014 season has begun and he has already drawn another 3 martins to my site.  As of 2:30 PM today, there are 4 here.  I hope you all have some housing out as the strong southerly winds and warmer weather is quickly bringing them in!


Sunday, March 2, 2014

Preparing for the Return of Your Martins

Well, February just slipped right by me and before I realized it, it was slipping out the door and waving goodbye!  Suddenly March was here and I am now trying to catch up!  I blinked I guess.  I checked the scout report yesterday and found that a martin has arrived at an older colony just 30 minutes south of me.  Last year, my martins arrived within 2 days of Joe's, so while I'm hoping that doesn't happen this year, I thought I'd send out this friendly reminder.

Hopefully, you’ve already been taking advantage of the few warm days that we’ve had and have some of these chores already completed.  If not, then print out this page and get started!  Your martins may not arrive soon, but preparing your site now will accomplish two things; 1) it will help keep you busy as you worry, “where are my martins?” and 2) it will ensure that when your martins DO arrive, you’ll have plenty of time to kick back with a pair of binoculars and enjoy every minute. 
Here’s your list – now get to it!


  1. Locate your predator guards and install on your poles to ensure that your martins will be safe from raccoons, snakes and other pole-climbing predators.  If you don’t have predator guards, now is a good time to either purchase one or make one for each of your poles.  Even if you don’t see any raccoons or snakes on your property, they are there and will strike at any time.  I am reprinting the section on Predators in this first newsletter as this is one of the most crucial aspects of caring for martins and may be the one thing that can make or break your colony.  Click here to find instructions on how to make a homemade predator guard:  http://www.purplemartin.org/update/PredBaff.html 
    A martin's-eye-view of a raccoon and the stovepipe baffle pole mount. The slick metal baffle wobbles on the pole preventing the raccoon from climbing to the box. The mesh inside the baffle keeps snakes from slithering up the pole. Illustration by Julie Zickefoose. © PMCA
  2. If you didn’t clean out their housing at the end of last year, now would be a good time to remove all the old nesting material and remove nests that have been built by house sparrows / starlings.
  3. Check the ropes, cables and winches on your gourd racks or housing.  Look for frayed ropes and cable wires and inspect closely for signs of rust.  If the cable or rope is frayed, then you need to replace them immediately.  If you have surface rust on your cable or winch, then you can simply use some WD-40 or follow the directions for your winch to oil/grease the mechanisms.
    Replacing Rope:  Rope: Polyester rope or nylon rope, or a combination of the two, are the best choices for outdoor use. Both will last up to 20 years. Polyester rope is the best choice and easy to find. Nylon rope is not common; look for solid, braided 100% nylon—it will be white in color. Nylon has more stretch than polyester, so may require tightening due to stretching. Avoid polypropylene rope, often mistakenly referred to as nylon rope.  It is usually yellow in color, and will last only two years when used outdoors. (reference:  PMCA)  Click on this link to read some helpful safety hints to save yourself from a trip to the emergency room or a concussion:  http://www.purplemartin.org/update/13%284%29Safety.pdf
  4. Check the nuts and bolts used to attach your poles together or mount your winch to your poles.  Tighten or replace if necessary.
  5. Check the doors on your housing and the port caps on your gourds to make sure they either raise & lower easily or come off easily.
  6. Ensure that the numbers on each of your compartments are large and clear so that you can read them with binoculars at a reasonable distance (Yes – numbering your nestboxes helps you keep track!)
  7. Run your housing or gourds up and down the poles a few times and make sure that they do not rotate around your pole.  The nest cavities must always stay oriented in the same direction when the housing is raised back up.
  8. Find a good source of Eastern White Pine needles and place up to 2-3 good sized handfuls in your gourds and at least 2 handfuls in your housing.
  9. Speaking of predators, hawks are on the prowl and they’re hungry.  Put up purple martin decoys to deter the hawks and help your martins escape.  With 75 pair last year, I will be putting up 14 purple martin decoys and 4 dove decoys at my site this season. http://shop.purplemartin.org/Purple_Martin_Decoys___4_Pack-details.aspx  
    Decoys can be mounted to your perches with hose clamps or other fasteners. They must be mounted securely, as hawks and owls will grab them.  To keep the mount from rotating around your rod, use some electrical tape under the fastening mechanism.  A Cooper's hawk repeatedly tried to grab several of my decoys last year, as evidenced by the scratches on this poor fellow.  This decoy was awarded a medal at the end of the year for his brave service while protecting my colony.

  10. Locate your starling and house sparrow traps and start trapping and eliminate these pests as quickly as possible before, during and after your martins’ arrival.
  11. Gather up all your nest check equipment and buy a cheap tackle box to put it in.  I personally stole a nice, heavy duty tool box from my husband and it works wonderfully!
  12. Buy yourself a cheap notebook with lined pages (you can get one for $.25 from the dollar store) and write down all your data this year.  
  13. Lastly, find your binoculars, camera and lawn chair because by the time you’re done with all the above, they’ll be here!

Attraction Techniques for New Sites

The most important thing you can do to attract purple martins is place your house or gourds in the most wide open area of your property.  The more open the site, the better your chances are of attracting martins so now is a good time to cut back bushes or trees that interfere with the martins’ flyways.  As one landlord on the PMCA forum once put it, "martins prefer to land like an airplane, not a helicopter".   When taking off from their housing, martins often launch themselves, drop down, then fly up.  When returning to their housing, they will drop down, then swoop up to their housing.  It's actually a very distinct flying trait that helps me identify them in flight when I don't have my glasses on, from other black birds.The PMCA site recommends at least 40 feet of wide open area around your housing, but the more you have the better your chances. 









Trees that are too close to your housing also provide hawks and other predators with cover from which they can launch surprise attacks on your martin colony.  It seems that martins are well aware of these potential threats.  As martins only breed and raise young once per year, it is imperative that they select the most safe, protected site they can find for that one shot.


For landlords that are new to purple martins this year, if your housing is located in a wide open area, then try some of these additional techniques to increase your chances this year:

  1. Make pre-made nests for each of your nesting cavities using Eastern white pine needles (do not use the pine needles that hurt when you crush it in your hand – that is called “short leaf” pine).  Usually 2 to 3 good fistfuls will suffice in the nest cavity.  If you are unable to find white pine needles, some alternatives for nesting materials are wheat straw, dry aspen shavings, corn fodder (shredded corn husks) etc.  I prefer the white pine needles or corn fodder as these materials are not likely to soak up and hold water.  Cold, wet nests can be deadly to bird nestlings.

  2. After making the nests, smear some mud around the entrance holes to make the nest cavity look “used”.  Most martins will build a mud “dam” at the front of their nesting cavity.

  3. Add perches to your house.  Martins are a bit wary of new sites and adding perching rods either on your housing or on a separate perching station will help them to feel safe while observing your house or gourds for their potential new families.
    Four foot garden stakes can be purchased at any local store and added to the railings of your housing with a couple of zip ties.



  4. Throw out oyster shells or prepared egg shells on a bare spot on the ground** away from shrubbery or in a tray mounted on a pole near the housing.  Lots of other birds, such as tree swallows, barn swallows and blue birds will also benefit from the calcium. Please note - after attracting purple martins using this method, move the calcium offerings up to a raised platform where the birds will be safer (they are slow to take off from the ground if a hawk attacks).

  5. Play the dawnsong cd (you can order the Dawnsong CD from the Purple Martin Conservation Association (PMCA)). Click here to order:
    https://www.purplemartin.org/shop/product/chat/purple-martin-daytime-chatter-cd/
  6. Place a couple of martin decoys on your housing.  **Note:  Some martins may not like this and may act very wary around the decoy, but on the other hand, some martins snuggle right up to the decoy – but don’t worry, the relationship will be short-lived.  Observe your new arrivals to determine their reaction to your decoys, then decide whether you should remove them or not.  Decoys can also help protect your martins during hawk or owl attacks.

  7. Do not allow native cavity nesting birds to take over your martin housing.  If native birds (blue birds, tree swallows, wrens, etc.) are trying to take over your martin housing, close your martin housing and put up suitable housing for these cavity nesters 25 to 35 feet away from your purple martin housing.  Once they have accepted the other housing, then you may open your martin housing.  CAUTION:  It is illegal to remove a native bird’s nest once they have laid eggs so make sure you move the birds out early!

    If the bluebirds or tree swallows persist, then go to this link to read more about directing them to their own nestboxes:  http://www.drugfreeworkplace.com/~Dan/TRIHABITATION/TSEMERGENCY.html
    The presence of bluebirds and tree swallows in your yard is actually an excellent indicator that you have created a bird-friendly yard!  Also, these birds should not be discouraged from nesting in your yard in their own appropriate housing.  In fact, bluebirds, tree swallows and purple martins have somewhat of a symbiotic relationship.  Bluebirds and tree swallows nesting in your yard can provide an early warning system, sounding an alarm call when a predator such as a hawk or cat is nearby, quickly flushing all the birds into the air to safety.
Photo by Larry Melcher, Member Extraordonaire - PMCA
  1. Eliminate non-native nest cavity competitors immediately.  English house sparrows and starlings are not native to this country and are not protected.  If a house sparrow finds your house or gourds, he will set up territory and run off the more docile young martins that try to nest there.  I know I keep repeating this in every article and newsletter I publish, but it is hard to over stress how important this step is to having a successful martin colony.  Re-read this blog post on dealing with the non-native birds.  http://kathyfreeze.blogspot.com/2014/02/english-house-sparrows-and-starlings.html 
To test your knowledge of Purple Martins, here are some fun March Trivia Questions (submit your answers in the comments section below - I'll provide the correct answers in my next post):

  1. Purple Martins normally migrate south at the end of their nesting season to what country?
    1. Cuba
    2. Mexico
    3. Brazil
    4. Puerto Rico
  2. On average, how long does a martin live?
    1. 10-12 years
    2. 2-5 years
    3. 15-17 years
    4. More than 20 years
  3. How far can a purple martin fly in one day?
    1. 358 miles
    2. 93 miles
    3. 150 miles
    4. 229 miles
  4. The purple martin is a member of which bird family?
    1. Finch
    2. Raptor
    3. Gnateater
    4. Swallow
  5. Which of the following reasons may cause you to not attract or lose your martins?
    1. A pair of English house sparrows have built a nest in one of the compartments
    2. Your purple martin house is enclosed by trees within 10 feet of your housing.
    3. You conducted a nest check last year and touched the martins’ babies.
    4. A snake climbed your pole and ate an adult pair and their 5 babies.