Martins won't stay

[dirty gardener]

I've had the same metal 2 story Martin house for 4 years. Last year I really cleaned the house out after the birds left. A couple of weeks ago, 6 birds arrived - as expected. They were here for a couple of days and then left. They've come back very briefly a few days, but don't appear happy here now. Late last evening, I saw several of them soaring high above the house, but they never came to the house. My husband says I shouldn't have used bleach to clean the house last summer, but I wouldn't think that would make a difference, since the house is metal and we did rinse it out afterwards. Why won't they stay - any ideas?

[Nikkidodi - SATX]

Not an expert by any means, but I've always used bleach to clean my houses and gourds and it doesn't seem to bother my tenants. Any remnant of bleach left after thorough rinsing is probably broken down after exposure to UV sunlight for a day or two. It could be that they are not sticking around just yet because they are looking for females to share their new home and the females aren't here yet. The fact that they are flying over your houses and are keeping an eye on them is a good thing. Hang in there.

[dirty gardener]

Thanks. This hasn't happened in the past. I thought the hurricane Florida experienced this summer might have had something to do with it. My husband wants to check the house again and possibly wash it more with fresh water. I might have to comply. Nothing left to do, but wait.

[-=DKC=-]

All remnants of bleach should be long gone by now. I wouldn't think that's the problem, although many people like to leave some evidence of last year's occupancy in the compartments. That's what I did this year and my birds seem happy with them.

As Nikkidodi - SATX said, they may just be hanging around the neighborhood and will take up residence later.

A few ideas from a novice landlord...

Check the compartments to make sure there are no mites, ants, wasps, blowflies, etc.

Do you have trees that have grown and are now closer?

Is there anything else that has changed at your site?

Do you have predators hanging around your yard?

Are House Sparrows or Starlings chasing them away?


Just brainstorming here.

[-=DKC=-]

Dupe. Sorry.

[Archer]

Sometimes, the first birds are not actually from your colony. They may just be taking a rest day or two and then moving on with the migration. Hopefully that is what is happening here. I don't know what your weather has been like, but when it gets cold, martins gather together in groups to try and stay warm, when it warms up they get back to business. Don't think the bleach has anything to do with it. Birds in general have poor sense of smell.

[Ed Svetich-WI]

Please describe your setup: how far from buildings, trees, shrubs,do you build prenests, how large are the cavities, how high off the ground, do you use any attraction devices such as Dawn Song? Are there any active colonies nearby? Bleach is a non issue.

Ed

[rrmartins]

How close is the nearest water?

[John Miller]

As Ed said, make your site as inviting as you can.

I suspect that Florida martins have a wider time window of returns and settling in. the further north you go in the martin range, the window narrows and martins may more often settle in right away.

John M

[flexauger]

I have also always used bleach in the fall to clean my gourds when taken down for the winter, in the spring i put a small handful of nest material and i usually give it a good "puff" of sevin dust from a little duster/puffer thingie like terminex uses to puff into cracks. I dont think the sevin dust has ever bothered them, i think it helps knock the mites down off the adults when they arrive, i usually give them another puff after the babies are born after they get mostly covered in feathers. Those mites can really explode and cause alot of misery im sure for the young who cannot escape them.
I remember when i used those barn looking houses that they didnt stay in them much, since ive switched to gourds they go right in, they may check out a few others but since they are all the same mostly, they pick pretty fast and sometimes spend hours in them, the males after they first arrive, i suppose they are resting up and saving their energy since there arent alot of bugs yet.
I am sure with your nice houses they will have tenants, you might consider hanging a few gourds underneath your houses, give them something to chose from and you can evaluate gourds vrs houses.
Good luck and happy landlording!

[marcus]

Did you have nesting martins last year?

[flyin-lowe]

Every colony is different but when I had my old colony before I moved I would have martins return and after a day or so they would disappear for a couple days, only stopping by briefly each day or two. After 4-5 days they would stay and get things ready for nesting. It was almost like they would stop in to check on their housing and then roost in groups somewhere the first few days.
As others have said the bleach would be gone by now, and the site fidelity they show is strong enough that they would not abandon a site because of a lack of nesting material or the house being cleaner then they want. So to me those were either not the same martins you had last year, or if they ware they will be back in a day or two. Unless they suffered from predation at the end of last season, that could cause them not to come back this spring....