Purple Martin Forum

Thanks for sharing Brenda! Do they like to have several other BS nests close by or will a single cup be enough to attract a pair? My wife likes having PMs and BBs , but she doesn't find their feces all over. I've read where the BSs leave messes in the area around their nest. I don't want to attract...

There is little information out there on attracting Barn Swallows sadly. I am with you, they are one of my favorites! (Barn and Tree Swallows are both fighting for leadership in my favorite bird...but I have not had the privilege of having martins ...). I do remember a few years ago here in Ontario ...

If you know for sure what nest is hers and that they are not being fed I think I would move the young to other nests of the same age. Spread them out so not to overwhelm the other parents. (But I'm not an experienced landlord so hopefully others will speak up). Without intervention they would likely...

Hey all, Sadly I am giving up hope and am selling the houses I have. I had planned to use them on conservation lands, and don't own property myself that could house martins, but the last of my hope has died (and even the bluebird boxes will be coming down). Located in Cambridge, Ontario But I can dr...

I have used the hawk eye with the cord in my birdhouse (no purple martins for me yet) and it does not seem to bother the birds at all. I believe the infra red is a light that they cannot see. I know a lot of people are using this (or similar) cameras in Purple Martin (and other birdhouses) for many ...

You can build your own. 12.35 for the plans
https://www.purplemartin.org/shop/produ ... ler-plans/

Thanks for this!
Very cool handy tool. It looks like it took quite a bit of time and thought to put together. Thanks for sharing!

I would highly recommend Uncle Blain's Sparrow Trap over the Songbird Essentials. Blain's is automatically self resetting so you can catch many birds with no need for you to intervene. Its silent so will not scare the rest of the flock and can keep trapping, the birds in the trap attract more TO the...

Awesome!
Those look wonderful, and large!!!

Wonderful blog, well done!
Also very interesting dispersal study referenced. Well done to Kathy for all that mentoring. Wow.

If the wrens have still been putting sticks in the box then its not far enough from the trees/shrubs. I would move it further away from the shrubs if possible. In the photos it does look a bit too close to the shrubs behind it. Moving it closer to the marten set up should not have a negative effect ...

PS: size of box: I always like bigger better. My EABL have chosen the larger boxes when they had a choice. Most of mine are 5 or 6 inches across the bottom and 8 inches deep to the entrance hole. Most EABL house plans call for a 4 inch floor which can be ok for Eastern Bluebirds but is far to small ...

There is a website dedicated entirely to bluebirds to: sialis.org For House Wrens they like nesting in shruby areas. Just place your box more than 30 meters away from any shrubs and you should not have wrens. For attracting Eastern Bluebirds you want to place the box in a nice open area free of tree...

Rendering eggs in-viable is only a delay tactic. Sometimes the HOSP will go on a 'rampage' for no apparent reason whatsoever. I second the in house trap. Once they have eggs in a nest they are super easy to catch in the in house traps. Mess with their nest and they just HAVE to go in and check on th...

I tend to let things be and wait things out with BB. I'm not sure how cold you felt but Momma does not need to keep them toasty hot constantly, she will leave the nest and they will cool slightly without getting totally chilled. If the eggs all looked intact I would leave them be and just see what h...

Breaking the neck is called 'cervical dislocation'.
I use a plastic bag and CO2 from a small 'bike tire inflater'.
(both are veterinary accepted 'humane', drowning is not....but it is hugely better than NOT dealing with them)

May be no need to worry about wet vs dry. Depends on when you bought the trap. The one I bought a few years ago had a non-wood arm and it is not affected by rain at all. I think only the much older ones have the wooden arm that is affected by rain, the newer models he solved that by making the arm o...

Male Bluebirds will defend 100 yards around their nestbox so you will not get more bluebirds by adding houses closer than (at least) 100 yards apart. I recommend to always pair boxes. Place two nestboxes 5 to 10 feet from each other; a Bluebird can nest in one a TRES in the other (if you only have o...

Seconded. I would be feeding like mad. It's been super cold and the snow is thick...(hopefully you haven't lost some already). The sumac here is half stripped of its seeds just from the cold snap this week (over 20 robins on it today), the birds are hungry! PS: Glad to see another Ontario poster! (I...

Ya, it takes patience at first. If you can catch a "bait bird" in a in-house trap and put a bird into the repeater then that helps. Once you have a bait bird in there that will draw in the rest. To start(without a bait bird) I will sometimes scatter millet around the area, if you do it a f...