Purple martins arrive in Forest Park, St. Louis

[John Miller]

Finally spotted seven and maybe eight this morning in Forest Park, St. Louis. Possible some arrived yesterday as I gave up driving to the park and looking for one day -- a watched pot -- but all's well.

Now of course will turn cold, but hopefully short lived.

John Miller

[RockyBrueseke]

So exciting!
I will visit you in the next month or so. I have a visit scheduled with Kathy Freeze in 2 weeks. I got my 6 new gourds up Sunday. I'm anxious.

[KathyF]

Congratulations, John! 'Bout time!

[taxidermy lady]

Yes I have been waiting on that one! Good luck John

[John Barrow]

Happy for you, John. And thank you for ALL that you do to spread the love and accessibility of purple martins to so many folks. You are a Great advocate for our friends the martins!!!!!!!!

[pmartinlover2]

Glad to hear they have arrived in Forest Park, John. Anything at your downtown locatiion? That intrigues me--right in the middle of the city no less! Surely they should love my smog-free, quiet, flower filled site you'd think? It was an exciting day here when I put up my new gourd rack with 6 Excluder gourds with crescent opening with wing entrapment devices and owl guards and the gourds are vented thanks to my son-in-law. It's a beautiful sight to admire from my dining room window. All that's missing are some martins. . Good luck this season and let us know when they arrive at the Botanical Gardens and Cahokia Mounds.
______
Jody

[daveh]

Good job John. Hope you have a great season.

I see in the scout report there's two John Millers. Are you John P Miller of St.Louis?

dave

[John Miller]

Dave

Thanks...I have not yet met John P Miller. I see the year before he posted from Spanish Lake, which is a community in north St. Louis County and probably is the actual location. Glad to know there are martins there. John M

[Lewis]

Great news John. If there is such thing, you qualify. The Martin whisperer of St. Louis. Anybody who can entice martins to nest in down town St. Lou must must have the magic.
John , you have helped so many of us to get started in this endeavor. It is refreshing each year to see you are still here doing what you do for the purple martin. God Bless.

Lewis

[Craig Haddox]

John, congratulation's on your arrivals. I was wondering when the martins were going to make it back there. Good luck this year.

[John Miller]

Thanks for all your kind comments.

If anyone wants to meet at the park this season and talk martins and review my sample box of nesting gourds, give me a call. I'll be a bit booked in April on weekdays during the day with a work project, but can try. May-June is pretty open.

Will be in Highland IL this evening (see sticky top of page).
314 781 2525

A little park story. Sometimes in the park sites in summer, I feel I'm the only one looking at the martin housing...hundreds of people out there looking at their cell phones. Why go to the park to talk on the phone - ha. Last year however, I was standing and looking at the golf course martins and a pretty young woman approached all excited. Her fiancé was golfing and she was bored and had sort of discovered bird watching; had a photo of a killdeer on her cell phone -- a good use of a phone -- which I helped ID. Made my day.

[MamaBruff]

Wonderful news! I think those Forest Park PMs have the nicest, most beautiful location for miles around. Thank you for maintaining their housing there (and all the other public sites you manage), so we humans can enjoy their presence, too!

How true about the cell phones. We were in FP one weekend in February, and the weather was unseasonably pleasant. Out in front of the Art Museum were lots of people on the lawn overlooking the Great Basin enjoying the day. Most were looking down at their phones. How funny to see a couple on a quilt seemingly ignoring each other, staring at their respective electronic devices. And on a nearby blanket, four beautiful young women were doing the same thing. Made me kinda sad.