Purple Martin Forum

This is kind of a strange question, but I don't think I've ever seen it addressed here so I thought I would ask it. I have a burn barrel in my back yard about 75-100 feet from my Martin house. Sometimes when I use it the smoke wafts over and past the Martin housing. I don't use it very often. My que...

This is just a question brought about by my own curiosity. Did the gulf oil spill have any appreciable effect on Martins or the Martin population.

Have there been any studies to determine this or is it too soon to make a determination?

Hello to all of my fellow Martin enthusiasts. A couple of recent warm sunny days have brought me out of my winter hibernation. A special hello to my Western Pa. buddies, Bob Allnock, Bill Wenger, and Doug Martin. I can't thank these three enough for the advice and assistance they have offered in hel...

John;
Thanks for posting that great story and video, truly an amazing site. I envy the people who are able to observe it in person. I'm hoping that a few of those Martins find their way to my waiting site next season. Hopefully it will be a safe and successful migration.

Doug; Thanks for the update on your colony. Sounds like you are having a very successful year. Your success is keeping my hopes up for next year, I figure with all of the success up north of me I have a decent chance of attracting some Martins next year. I'll be spending the off season thinking abou...

Ryan; Those Martins must be crazy, ignoring your housing, but I'm sure it is just a site loyalty thing. I am finishing up my second year of trying to attract Martins, with no luck so far. My biggest problem seems to be a lack of an active colony anywhere near me. Successful colonies to the north and...

Doug; Keep the good news coming, it is really encouraging. I am counting on the success of all of you landlords to the north of me to lead to success for me next year. I figure some of those Martins will be flying over my site heading north next year. I read your suggestions in the previous post and...

Doug; I'm enjoying reading your posts about your continued success, sounds like a lot of fun. How is the lake site doing? Still no luck down here but I'm not giving up, there's always next year. Since you landlords north of me are having good success this year I am hoping it will bode well for me ne...

Doug; Glad to hear you are still seeing arriving subbies. Whatever their route to your site, it sure doesn't seem to go past my place. I am beginning to think that I am just not anywhere near a migration route. I still haven't even had a visitor to my knowledge. Do you think they follow set migratio...

Toyin; Sorry to hear about your losses but it sounds like you are still having a very successful season, certainly doing your part to increase the Martin population in Pennsylvania. Now if some of those new hatches would just find their way down into the southwest corner of the state that would be j...

After having both Bluebirds and Tree Swallows interested in my Martin housing I followed the proper protocol and provided a Bluebird box for both. The Bluebirds are nesting in one, but so far no Tree Swallows in the other, and the Bluebirds have started to be very aggressive toward any other birds t...

Doug; Glad to hear of your continued success, sounds like you are on your way to building up a sustainable colony. Anyone who has tried as hard as you have for 28 years deserves all of the good fortune you seem to be having now. Sounds like your efforts at the lake site are being rewarded also. I ho...

Carlton; In my case the Bluebirds seem to have won out over the Tree Swallows. I placed two Bluebird houses the appropriate distance from my housing hoping that the Bluebirds would claim one and the Tree Swallows the other, but the Bluebirds are guarding both houses. They have a nest in the one but ...

Doug;
Thanks for the good advice on the Dawnsong, I'm sure it will be helpful. I never thought of playing it at some of the times you mention, but I will from now on. I know I need all the help I can get.

Hanover Bill.

Toyin;
Glad to hear about your subbie, hopefully more to come. From the posts on the forum it sounds like there is quite a bit of SY activity now up here in the north. Still waiting and hoping here, but reading the posts gives me encouragement. Continued success to you.

Hanover Bill.

Bill;
Glad to hear about your good news. Sounds like you're almost there. Now if you can give some of those SYs a map to Southwestern Pa. as they pass through your area, we would be forever grateful. Continued success to you.

Hanover Bill.

Doug; Great news. You're giving me some hope down here in Southern Beaver County. Sounds like there are Martins in our area, now I just need to be lucky enough to have one stop and investigate my site, and then lucky enough to have him stick around. How do they say it, "hope springs eternal". Contin...

Martin Man; Glad to hear the good news from New England. From everything I have learned and heard we here in Pennsylvania are still trying to recover from Hurricane Agnes way back in 1972, as hard as that is to believe. I understand that it killed off virtually every Martin in the state and we haven...

Toyin;
Sounds like that pair is prepared to do what they can to increase the Pennsylvania Martin population. Glad to hear it, we need more Martins in Pa.

Hanover Bill.

Delma; You go ahead and post away, negative or positive. We want to keep track of how things are going for you. If you post a negative message I'm sure the nice people on this forum will try to turn it into a positive for you. Glad you're having a nice sunny Monday in Oklahoma, it's cool and rainy i...