Purple Martin Forum

Great to hear! Record numbers for me this year in SWLA. They seem to be thriving, and I'm keeping the HOSPS at bay.

Wow. I found an ASY male dead on a porch yesterday. He wasn't stuck and I couldn't see any apparent injuries. We do the best we can. Hope you have a great season.

jogl wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 09, 2026 3:53 pm

Don't have any idea what its like down south (went to NO once, that was enough for me), but up here in canukistan it is HOSP's 99 times out of 100.

I agree. I live in Louisiana and stay away from NO.

Im in SWLA. I have about 25 PMs so far, which is the most ever I've had at this time of year. Also, tons of flying insects as always.

Thanks Phil. Old guy here can still follow directions (sometimes). It did say file too large at first, but I tried again and did it. Lol.

Ok Mike, I’ll give it a go….. I’m at about your level when it comes to technology so hopefully this works… 1. Hit reply to post 2. Scroll down to where it says Options/Attachments 3. Press Attachments 4. Below it “Add Files” should come up. 5. Press “Add files” and it should give you a choice to go...

Awesome! So, often will you feed them? Only during prolonged cold and or rain? I wonder if you don't do it every so often, will they forget?

Awesome! Did you lose PMs last year with the freezes?

Maybe just some passing through. I've had some stay for a few days and then move on. They have strong site fidelity as long as conditions of the colony are adequate. I bet more will be there soon!

Get em Conrad! Here's to a great season!

Got up to 68 here today in SWLA! No PMs yet here. Last year my 10 early returners perished during another extreme cold front. Hopefully, it won't happen again this year!

Timely topic, thanks fellows. Reminds me of new born calves born in the dead of winter: if they nurse right away and fill their tummies, they normally survive. If it were only so easy with PMs. Last year was a disaster here: 50 early ASY males died from the weather. This year experimenting with a h...

I love this. We all just want to help. My belief is that feeding is clearly #1, but some sort of heating may help them conserve a little more energy to make it to another day where conditions are better for them to be able to feed. I totally agree with Thomas on the above statement. There have been...

I love this. We all just want to help. My belief is that feeding is clearly #1, but some sort of heating may help them conserve a little more energy to make it to another day where conditions are better for them to be able to feed.

Most of these reptile ceramic setups appear to be for indoor use. How do you protect it from the rain?

Thank you. I actually have a ceramic reptile heat emitting bulb without light. It's 100 watt though.

Tell me(us) about how you provided heat to PM houses. Would 1 light bulb be able to heat a 16 compartment aluminum house? I'm having a fairly mild winter so far, but you never know.

Hmm. Wondering if something happened South in their wintering areas?

I have decided to put mine up this week. I may get lucky and pick up a few new ones or give some a place to rest before moving on. I'll even let HOSPS hang out for a day or 2. Ha. Best of wishes for everyone!

What have you found to be the most durable rope for a pulley ? Mine is on an 8 gour rack, so not much weight.