Purple Martin Forum

Try putting some decoys on your houses or perching areas. Also buy sone dove decoys and put them up in an open spot away from the PM housing... Might help draw the hawks there first allowing martins to escape. I've seen hawks (two occasions) swoop down and hit the decoys... The decoys dont move and ...

Welcome back. I remember when I read your name the first time years ago, I thought "Yankee spelling for a coon-ass name". I think I was in Slidell when you were here (I was in Eden Isles until Katrina). Yes siree.. that was me. LoL. (dsonyay= D. Sonnier) I see a couple of regulars are still here. W...

I won't be surprised if you don't have 30 pair in a couple years. Thanks.. I remember you from back when I lived in Slidell and was posting a lot more... and I remember you moving and trying to restart a colony. It was so frustrating here in Broussard .. I would see people with plenty of martins ne...

deancamp wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 21, 2020 5:21 pm

Glad you figured it out and are back in the game. I think this is a good example of seeing whats going on and adapting to the situation. Good work!

Thanks Dean.

Thanks all... The SK Barn was an attempt to make things look a little different this year and offer something extra for curious martins. It's supposed to mount on a tri pole, but I modded it to hang on an arm. One male ASY seems to favor the house. I also did the mod that doubles the room size plus ...

I haven't posted in about 5 or 6 years... I had a nice colony starting in Slidell La, but had to move to Broussard LA. in 2014. I brought my gourd rack with me and got it planted.. took SIX YEARS, but I finally have a pair building a nest this week. Insane. I went from a terrible location (lots of c...

A dremel tool with cutting wheel works really well too.

The round pole is good. My old neighbor had one and it survived tropical storm force winds (hurricane Gustav and another one a couple years later) with a full load of gourds at the fully extended position. Did not bend. I had a tritel for a long time and it did fine. I removed to plastic clips and r...

Pretty good dorncounty.... Im a retired meteorologist.. Where the stratosphere starts.. the temps are about -55C ( about 12 miles above), gradually warming with altitude.. At the very top of the stratosphere the max temp is just below freezing.. -2C And that's at about 30 miles above our nose. :) I ...

Well, I have two.. Five sounds fine. Hey, at the least you'll loom lime you have an active colony. Cue up some daytime chatter music and you'll have an awesome artificial colony.

Last year my wife and I witnessed a very large hawk drop out of the sky, and latch onto a decoy. That hawk ended upside down grasping onto the decoy trying to rip it off the rod I had screwed it I to. Amazing thing to watch. He gave up and flew to the other decoy, latched onto it, flapped his wings ...

I report the first martin I spot in my area (for the benefit of scout tracking). If I report the day a martin stays at my gourds , I could be weeks off regarding a scout report. The cool thing is to watch the purple dots creep up slowly northward over the season. :) Maybe there should be a separate ...

Yes, definitely I agree... I wouldn't have thought twice to a first report for someone in the lower half of the state.. Especially SE Louisiana. A report way up in N La is kiinda odd, since none of the regular established colonies have even heard the chirp. Like Thibodeaux , Shriever, Lafayette... O...

Yep.. In the big picture, you can still good some good date out of reports, even with some incorrect reports.

In my area, south La. I'm surprised not to have seen barn swallows yet .. I'm used to seeing them earlier than martins.

My neighbor in Broussard La (south La) has a 15 year colony and hasn't had a scout yet. Yet there is a scout report way up in north La, Haughton. I find this hard to believe, but of course it's possible. The last time the guy reported from Haughton was way back in 2009 and it was for Feb. Matter of ...

Yes.. I know about the PVC plans for Chickadees. Making two or three and will place them in the wooded area across from my property. Will be fun to monitor

The may not nest there because the BB box is not very close to shrubs or trees. About 50 to 60 feet away from nearest tree.

I have a male BB working hard to get a female right now.

Thanks!

Thanks. I have them in my area. First time I've ever seen one.
Do they compete with BBs for the same boxes I have up?

Is this a chicadee?