Purple Martin Forum

It took me 3 years to get a nesting pair. First 2 years with nary a visitor. Last year a single ASY male for one half day. Finally this year 3 nesting pairs, but with limited success, only the 3rd and finale nest with successful hatches, 5 for 5 The first 2 nests were both 0 for 4. Only thing I can ...

I was a martin landlord back around 2005 for a couple years. Was successful with a self built wooden house and 2 natural gourds I made that hung under the house. I'm looking to put up gourds for next year. I'm wanting to buy a S&K 1.9 round pole and 6 gourd rack. I found a 8 pack of S&K BO ...

I was a martin landlord back around 2005 for a couple years. Was successful with a self built wooden house and 2 natural gourds I made that hung under the house. I'm looking to put up gourds for next year. I'm wanting to buy a S&K 1.9 round pole and 6 gourd rack. I found a 8 pack of S&K BO ...

Year number 10 has proven to be a huge success. Nest check completed on June 30th showed 144 nesting pair. A 35 pair increase from 2020. With no apparent losses due to predation. So you are why it took me 3 years to get my first pair!?!? 😉 You have all the Martins!! If you don't mind me asking, whe...

My first 2 nesting pair this year (all SY martins) were 0 for 8 on eggs that hatched. Each nest had 4 eggs that all failed to hatch. Projected dates were June 30 and July 4. The female in the latter nest is still sitting on her eggs this evening. What will the martins do at this point? Will they att...

What a difference a few latitudes make. I'm still waiting for my first eggs to hatch.

I did nest checks yesterday and 2 of the nests, the eggs looked dirty, not at all like polished eggs like you would expect from being incubated and being brushed by feathers. All of the martins are still in the area and I still occasionally see one fly out of the gourd.

Another option to deal with sparrows who build nests in Martin housing is to let them keep the nest intact and collect their eggs and shake them vigorously so as to make them non-viable and they will not hatch. The sparrows will continue to sit on the eggs and think they are going to hatch until the...

Brent, as far as Iv seen even after fledging and they have moved to roost the ASY males and females come back and defend their now empty nest. they are dedicated to that cavity and will defend it, although they have no immediate plans to use it. Nor do they stay over night after going to roost, the...

The pictures are too large to attach, so here is a link if anyone is interested.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/fPXBioEGEfXAW5HN6

S and K will not answer this for me. They just send directions for adding tunnels to regular Bo Nines. Did you remember to cut out the face of the Bo 9 before attaching the tunnel? It really opens up the interior and makes it much more suitable to martins, especially as they near fledging size. Spe...

is harassing my nest building martins all the time........all two of them! He's not afraid of me and was wondering if anyone here has had a problem with these birds? Same problem here in Iowa. Live across from a horse pasture so there is really nothing to be done. They are not cavity nesters accord...

We keep all our egg shells and crush them, either for the garden or we put it in the gravel lane where we see martins land to pick up grit.

I've seen videos from PMCA of house wrens stealing eggs out of a Martin nest.

When I bought my seeds to plant this year, the pack said birdhouse goards. Well, it ended up being bottleneck goards. Is there any reason I can't use them next year if they are big around enough?? I am using S&K Bo 9 gourds, which are pretty much the smallest artificial gourds on the market. Th...

Piggy backing on this topic, I have a Martin nest that is complete, including leaves, but no eggs. I still see them martins go in and out of it daily, but as of last nest check 2 days ago, no eggs. When does it get to be too late to expect eggs?

My 2nd year trying to become a landlord. I have a Male SY that has been at my housing complex for 12 straight days! Appears at all times - dawn, morning, afternoon and evening. He enters/checks out the apartments and sings on the perching post. That is all the good news. The concern is he brought a...

Well, I saw my first martin on May 30th and today during nest checks I found a nest with 2 eggs, so that must put the gestation period at 11-12 days.

Hello, I am new to the forum and new to attracting purple martins. I built a T-14 Martin house in January and recently added 6 Royal Wing gourds with tunnels. I began with round holes thinking I could control the Starlings, I was quick to find out that it is impossible to do, I now have Conley II’s...

Greetings Fellow Purple Martin Landlords, There was a Coppers Hawk attack today on my colony of birds, killing 1 bird :-( , and I'm not sure of what, if anything, I can or should do to prevent future attacks. I have 1 house with 6 units and 12 super gourds. There are 15 pairs of birds with differen...