Purple Martin Forum

I don't think it will work during nesting season, when hormones are raging and the urge to nest is irresistible... I tried something similar to what you are describing... Once, I had a male HOSP claim an empty BB house in prime season. I then caught another male HOSP in a BB house trap in another ar...

Best wishes on your relocation! I have always enjoyed your posts. Now they will be from NC. Maybe you can get your family involved in Martineering too ! Keep your Beak up and you will do fine! Please keep us posted.

Casey, In 2013, my line of thought was "buy quality, buy once"... so I splurged and I bought a Trendsetter 12. I kept it for 3 years, and only had one pair stay in it the first year, and only visitors thereafter. Probably because it was not the kind of house the birds in my area are "imprinted" on. ...

Hotel Mangan is on Purplocity now, you know. You just earned some host points! "Room secure but breezy"..."Any Port in a Storm"... "Please wait until after Labor Day to take down housing"... :wink: Better than me, I have a few cavities open, but they just attract newest batch of Juvenile HOSP from t...

LIKE!

That look on the clerk's face when you say "I have 11 frozen House Sparrows here in my coffee can for the Naturalist to feed the Kestrel and the Snakes. They were euthanized by cervical dislocation, no chemicals".... LOL Blank stare... He says "Oh, well you need to go into the gift shop and give the...

Thank you for your kind words. Things will get better as they generally do. Time changes everything.

Another year with no martins, but for the past month have had daily visits from a number of floater males SY and ASY. They are mainly interested in the plastic house, but also check out the gourd rack. Hopefully they are "imprinting" on my housing.... Good luck and congrats to you all who are fledgi...

Kyler, I can't speak for the S&K rack, but if you haven't ordered your gourds yet, you might consider the vertical ones instead of the horizontal ones. I have some of each. (No Martins however).. BUT When I ordered the last set of gourds from Troyer's, Adam told me that while the birds had no prefer...

Dorn, I wish I had listened to you earlier. Thank you for the reminder. I REALLY need to buy, borrow, or steal a used Trio for few years. Oh Yeah. Hubby Jeff is itching to dig another hole for me! (Hahahaha) The PMs come and check out the plastic house first. ALWAYS. Had a couple of of SY's actually...

Cheryl,
I've gotten one email and replied. Will ck again for more. Did you get my reply?
Mary

Exit strategy worked! Congratulations!!

Tim, You have a lovely site, and I always enjoy coming to help with banding the babies. I'm sorry for all your S&S and weather troubles, but it sounds like you and your birds are figuring it out. I have a Martin friend who says "If the starlings are even hanging around your housing, then they percei...

Okie and Cheryl, I know there is an email bubble on some of our profiles, but I have sent emails through those and have yet to get a response. Please email me and I can help you with the contact information you seek. Again, sorry for the topic hijack, Stan. We are all interested in how the vented ca...

You will be surprised at how hard the mollusk shells are. I asked a coastal person one time why they just don't throw the empty oyster shells in the driveway and drive over them- and was promptly told they are so hard they cut the tires of their vehicles! Perhaps a better idea for you is to spend an...

Okie, No, only one fledged. I had 2 live babies at 23 days, and 1 fledged at 26 days. The parents were terrible at the end, preferring to hang out at roost area or biker bar, IDK. Would only come late morning to mid afternoon, then Poof- gone. I think the 2nd baby died of starvation. No more Martins...

Thanks to everyone for your encouragement, humor, helpful advice, tips, and guiding me through modifications. You, my PM friends are who have kept me from calling it quits many times over. Quite a learning curve to this landlord business, I am finding out! God Bless You All!

Stan, the PVC Vent caps look like a wonderful idea. Please let us know how well they work for you. Congrats on your healthy colony too!

Okie you sound a lot like me in 2013 when I had one pair with 2 babies. They were all I had. I called them "the precious" in my best Gollum voice. HOSP drove me crazy with fear they would hurt "the precious."... you have good reason to be vigilant! Hang in there!

Yay! Your hard work is paying off! Soon they will be carrying in nesting material! Good luck, and keep us posted.