New housing and location for year 12 trying

[Ryan]

Into prime time up north here with really only a couple weeks left to get my site noticed by a SY martin. I can't believe it's going on 12 years. I've never lived at a house that was open enough to have housing, always too treed, so over the years I've scattered 4 houses across the county in open areas, and all to no luck yet. Sidebar, there are very few martins up here. They used to be common in the 70's. My closest colony is a small one maybe 6-8 pair 27 miles northwest of me. There is a large one with 100 pairs 75 miles East, nothing south for at least 50 miles, and West is worse with forest and hills with no colonies for at least 80 miles. It's slim pickings and flyovers are extremely rare.

We moved to a new spot last summer and honestly the land is great but my #1 bonus with it was that I knew it would be prime purple martin space. A chainsaw helped open it up, and now I finally have a martin house on my property. It's a lot better to be able to monitor a site when you live there. I believe this location checks all boxes. Distance from trees, open flyways, distance to human housing, proximity to water.

I still have to landscape and get a lawn going, but I did get the chalets and natural gourds up a couple weeks ago. No visitors yet, but this one is only about 500 yards from my other housing site that I have seen one SY male visit each of the last 3 seasons. (I have only seen 5 SY males in 12 years total, like I said they are scarce). The dawnsong plays 5am to 7 pm daily and has for a decade. I have worn out one power horn speaker already, onto my second one.

I have 6 cedar chalets and I managed to get 6 decent gourds grown last year and have them up with tunnels. Two realistic weeks left up here.

[jhcox]

Don’t forget Ryan there is also the fall when birds migrate south for the winter they may stop and stay over night to rest there or just see it and like it. They could come back to your site next year to start your colony. Good luck

[white-out]

I would trap a hundred down south and turn them loose at home. No bird or human would leave that place! Very nice and good luck!

[Ryan]

Don’t forget Ryan there is also the fall when birds migrate south for the winter they may stop and stay over night to rest there or just see it and like it. They could come back to your site next year to start your colony. Good luck

Yes, thanks. I've been playing dawnsong/chatter right through the season the last couple years. But, being on the northern range, there's so few flyovers south during migration.

[Jones4381]

Wow...Absolutely beautiful. the land, lake, and housing are spectacular...Sending you good vibes and thanks for sharing the photos...I hope they select you as yours is one of the best set ups I've seen.

[randyM]

Very nice looking site! If any birds stop by they should stay as it appears they have all they need for successful reproduction. I'd suggest you play the dawn song or daytime chatter CD each year through early September. Young of the year martins and adult martins that were unsuccessful at nesting range far and wide exploring before their migration southward. A few young of the year banded at my colony were spotted 200 miles NE of my site a month after they fledged. So you don't necessarily have to have birds migrating from the north to discover your site. You have colonies within 100 miles, so keep playing the CD in case some fall traffic passes overhead. I play the chatter CD in the fall and have had up to 30 visitors stop by in Sept., well after resident birds had departed my colony. Nearest active colony to my site is 25 miles. Best of luck to you!

Randy

[dsonyay]

Those houses are perfect. Too perfect. Try leaning them at an odd angle.. stuff a cavity or two with weeds, feathers, and bits of plastic, and finally place a couple of plastic house sparrows on the rack somewhere,,, bonus would be to pull the roof off of one or two cavities. Martins seem to love that.

I’m kidding of course.. but i find it crazy how some people’s highly neglected setups, will attract plenty martins, while a few houses down the perfect rack and treeless area is ignored. Such is life.

I went about 5 years in the same boat as you after moving to a new town a couple hours away. Sooner or later you’ll hit the 777 on the slot machine

[Matt F.]

Hi Ryan,
Lots of us have been pulling for you for years!
Have you been aware of any activity on the North Star you put up in that neighboring town, or the chalets you put up there in downtown Eganville?

[Dave Reynolds]

.. Great looking House ... Good looking wide open space... If you are havlng some visitors, your doing something.. Were pulling for ya, Good luck the rest of the season..

Dave

[Martintown33]

Hi Ryan., that is a great setup and site! Wishing you luck!
Rob

[Martintown33]

Hey dsonyay.. your post brought back memories.. so true and funny about martins and ragged out housing.. 22 years ago, right before I started my colony… my neighbor had a 20 year colony. His house was an old plywood house that he had mounted on top of a creosote telephone pole. Don’t ask me how he got it up there! Lol.. anyway, the house had been rotting away for years. Half the roof was gone and the walls were falling apart. A nearby elm tree had completely engulfed the house.. and yet , every year, I would watch in amazement, as the martins would return and nest in that crumbling house. I already had a basic knowledge of martins, as my dad and uncle had colonies when I was growing up, so I marveled at their site fidelity! Then 22 years ago, a late season hurricane blew that telephone pole and Martin house down. That following December I asked him if he was going to put up another Martin house. He said no, he was getting too old for that. So I thought, this is my chance!!! I knew they would be coming back and looking for housing.. I bought 2 houses and put them up. In late January, the first of his martins returned. They circled and squawked looking for their house for 1/2 the day. Then as I watched, the first male came over to my housing, about 40 yards away. Soon the others followed.., 2 weeks later, his whole colony had completely moved into my housing. I had an instant 12 pair colony on my first attempt. I was so fortunate… I nurtured them and my new colony grew from there, as I added more compartments.
...I feel for and admire the noble efforts of all the beginning landlords on here, starting up their colonies.. it’s a great thing y’all are doing to want to help these interesting and entertaining birds.. I hope that all of you are successful and your great efforts pay off!
Good luck to you,
Rob

[Ryan]

Thanks everyone. Yes, the goal now is to attract as many visitors as possible, I'm now comfortable with my site. I only see maybe one a year though, so that's an issue. Not sure how to increase that, there's just very few up here. I play the dawnsong a little louder than the real birds. For a couple years I played it very loud and I think it scared them off because I didn't see any for a couple years and wasn't around all the time to turn down the sound if any showed up. I certainly think now that there's a sweet spot in dawnsong loudness. There's a thing as too loud.

I have decoys, pre-nests, mirrors and mud so I think I just have to wait. Not much else to do.

Hi Ryan,
Lots of us have been pulling for you for years!
Have you been aware of any activity on the North Star you put up in that neighboring town, or the chalets you put up there in downtown Eganville?

You have a good memory, ha. Surprisingly I have never seen a martin at that housing and I do drive past that a few times a day and work close. I think some day it will be a good location to educate people. It's right down town and in view of many and they just opened a roof top restaurant 50 yards from it. It has potential. I thought it might be the first site to get martins but it hasn't been found. I can't play the dawnsong there though which is probably the reason it's be quiet on visitors.

Here's an old picture of that one, but good memory. That must be up now for 6-7 years.

[Ryan]

A few young of the year banded at my colony were spotted 200 miles NE of my site a month after they fledged.

Randy

This is really good info, thanks.

There's been so much research done on martins movement in migration and wintering season, but I haven't seen much tracking done on martins in their breeding season.

For people trying to attract, I'd love to see how far feeding and breeding pairs travel in the summer, especially after nesting. Mostly I'd love to see how far those non breeding single males and those hatch year martins cruise around during the season.

Your story is exactly that. I haven't seen much studying done on summer movement of martins but maybe I haven't found any key articles. Your 200 mile travel is interesting. I've never seen a martin after June here, but I'll keep praying attraction audio into late summer.