Hello
A while back I posted a photo of an unmodifed Trio house to which I added some "awnings" -- as a compromise to my parents in Kentucky -- to add more weather protection to the shallow compartments and maybe some owl protection. As you can see from the photo, the martins like it. We did two houses this way.
At my park site in St. Louis, I have a modified, deep compartment, three-story Trio house and would like to make it still more owl safe -- but any further housing modification seems to have pros and cons. These awnings add a lot of shade in summer and may help deflect owls. However, they block the view of the sky/hawks. I'm thinking about putting mini canopies above the holes, much as we do on gourds.
Meanwhile, I post the photo FYI -- maybe spark some ideas -- and I never tire of seeing photos of martins!
John Miller,
St. Louis, Mo
Trio house with awnings
When I modified mine I put block off plates right if front of the entry hole. This prevented anything looking into or reaching into the nest cavity. Didn't bother the martins at all. Steve K. suggested it after owl had visited. It has worked so far. I also think it keeps the sun out and rain out some with the 6" panel right in front of the entry hole attached to the outside edges of the porches on My trios.