Purple Martin Forum

This is our site's 6th year in the Cincinnati area.
With 73 cavities (Naturelines, Coates Watersedge, & Trios) we had 68 pair w/ 343 eggs in 2012.
No sightings yet; 3/19 last season.

I'm not familiar with the plastic material mentioned earlier, but see no reason why it would not work--so long as it is circular and the one-piece is large enough to be forced into a concave (nest-bowl) shape with securing wire once inside the cavity. We found the cedar shavings contributed to nest ...

1. Make a circular, lightweight cardboard template that is about 7 3/4" in diameter FOR NATURELINES--I just used one face of an "adult beverage" carton. For other manufacturers, suggest experimenting w/ optimum sizes. 2. Using what is often called "hail screen" or "rabb...

Might want to also consider adding "nest trays" to your gourds. better nest drainage/drying more air circulation easier end-of-season cleanout helps prevent chick leg splay Happy to provide a "recipe" as we have successfully (343 eggs layed in 2012) used them in Natureline gourds...

Steve: For some time we have very successfully used wire mesh subfloors in our gourds--cut circular. They are hand made from 1/4" galvanized hardware cloth--available at most hardware stores in rolls (also called hail- or rabbit-screen). We size the circles large enough that the edges contact t...

Last year, 2011, was the only time Purple Martins were reported this late, Jan 5th.

And, I suspect, with the new tracking startup, many/many landlords were not even aware of the reporting system.

So, for 13 of 14 years they have been reported in S. Florida by now.

Go figure?

In addition to pre-season trapping and (as Steve mentioned) shooting during the PM season, we have been very successful over the fall/winter here in shooting both starlings and house sparrows. Rather than a longer, more difficult pellet-gun shot toward distant housing, it has been very productive to...

Prime PM season is also prime dragonfly season--as they are a/the main source of "high value" protein since they are relatively large.

And dragonflies do eat lots of mosquitos--often very close to the ground.

We have successfully used nest trays for gourds, both plastic and natural, made from 1/4" galvanized hardware cloth (sometimes called rabbit screen). The advantages of using either this hardware cloth or plastic gutter guard over wood or metal are: lightweight. non-corrosive. easy to install (j...

Don't know of any scientific research on the effects of high heat and humidity on Purple Martins. However, intuitively, take a look at a globe/map. Almost all of Brazil is between the Equator to maybe 15-degrees South. Take a look at the degrees North of your individual colony. I wonder if we are to...

We have been very successful adding nest "trays" to the 24 Natureline gourds in our (now) 73-cavity colony. Over 3 years, we have gone from 79, to 175, to 256 eggs (when 56 cavities) at the Grand Valley Preserve in eastern Cincinnati. The trays are made of 1/4" galvanized hardware clo...

Louise: It is great as is. However, try pushing your zoom level to 200% and you will see much better the "white areas" where no PMs are reported. What would be an enhancement would be to double the size of the map on the web page, then, half the size of the arrival dots. Looks like the dot...

On Sunday, 4/3, a hugh (single-day) influx of PM scouts was reported in 6 Upper Midwest states. By state, here is the percentage of reports from Sunday compared to total: Michigan 100% Wisconsin 86% Minnesota 100% Iowa 43% Nebraska 33% Ohio 49% Thanks to Louise C and John B in Corpus Christi for sen...

Does anyone have any experience in taking out the HOSP nest, then plugging the cavity?

I believe it would make the scout arrival map much more interesting if the U.S./Canada map were about doubled in size, and the arrival "dots" reduced in size by about 1/2 from the size they are now.

Each "dot" now probably covers 50+ miles

There has been a pre-migratory staging area on high voltage lines here for probably decades. The private preserve is a former gravel excavation site. This year we observed 1st Tree Swallow here on 3/8; had a half dozen Bluebirds spend the winter in BB housing that stayed up--offering 20 cavities (Pe...

re: elimination of house sparrows and european starlings 1. In areas where there are significant numbers of starlings, certainly the SREH entrances provide very good deterrents to cavity entry. 2. The various designs of ground traps do a fairly good job with both hosp and starlings; caution--all tra...

http://florida.hometownlocator.com/fl/d ... e-suzy.cfm

Looks like Lake Suzy is just North of I-75 & Charlotte Harbor--in/near the Peace River Corridor.

We have used 4" diameter PVC (the light green irrigation pipe) around both Bluebird and Purple Martin poles. One issue on the PM poles, when using a winch, is the height (above grade) for the winch; too high, and you cannot lower the house/gourd rack sufficiently for nest checks. So, we have bo...

We have had great success with the 2" X 4" galvanized fencing for hawk/owl guards on Coates, Trio, Trio Castles, and most other houses. The easiest to operate and most flexible installation we have found uses 2-piece (wrap-around) guards on the castle and single (custom cut & bent) pie...