Project MartinWatch

Have Purple Martins? SUBMIT YOUR DATA

What is Project MartinWatch?

Project MartinWatch (PMW) is a continent-wide Citizen-Science project designed to help landlords better manage their colony as well as help the Purple Martin Conservation Association (PMCA) track the reproductive biology of Purple Martins.  Information collected includes nesting dates, number of eggs laid, how many eggs hatch, and how many nestlings survive.  The data is used to study the current conditions of the Purple Martin population and determine how it may be changing over time as a result of habitat variations, climate change, and the introduction of non-native species.

What can we learn from PMW?

  • Do early nests have a higher fledging success?
  • Does parental age affect clutch size and fledging success?
  • Will martins imprint on their natal cavity type?
  • What amounts of harm non-native species are causing to martin populations?
  • Addressing regional changes in Purple Martin populations

 

Why you should participate:

During the nesting season martins will face many challenges, including weather events, nest parasites, and predators.  All of these things can cause the loss of an entire colony site.  Through participating in PMW, landlords are able to catch and fix these problems, thus helping to avoid the loss of the colony.  Monitoring can help you ensure that your martins are as safe and productive as they can be.  Starting a colony can be difficult and this project will help to avoid having to start over!

How Can You Help?

Participation in Project MartinWatch is fun!  You can become involved by establishing a martin colony of your own or teaming up with others to help monitor one of their colonies.  At the end of the nesting season, submit your report to the PMCA via mail or use our data submission sheet (downloadable below) and e-mail to: [email protected].  Your observations will be added to those of hundreds of other Project MartinWatch participants in a continually-growing database used by biologists to study Purple Martins.

Without your help it would be impossible to gather enough information to accurately monitor martins across their range.  And while you are contributing extremely valuable information to science, you will learn first-hand about these amazing birds and create a lifelong bond with the natural world.

How to Participate:

•Enter your nest checks here

•Download an Excel spreadsheet and submit to [javascript protected email address]
    For PCs
    For Macs

•Download a copy of the Project MartinWatch data entry sheet and submit to [javascript protected email address]
     Updated data sheet with rows for 19 cavities
     Data sheet with rows for 24 cavities