Disappointed totally

DelmaWhisenhunt · Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:29 pm

Arrived home after being away almost a month and no sign of any martins for the new location. Noticed martins are in the area, this makes several years and if nothing happens this season I am taking the house down and bidding them farewell, just as they have done for me. The house is in an open area, cleaned out, proper height, have done the best I can for the purple martins. My son has really had a let down, after building a fabulous house no takers this season. The last he had martins a storm blew the house over and several babies were killed, since that time no return, which this all happened last year. I will continue to have interest and be glad for those with success. Guess I don't have what it takes. Oddly enough I don't even see any sparrows around.

Don Strickland · Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:43 pm

So sorry Delma. You had everyone's best wishes. Maybe next season.
Don't think you should just give up though. Wouldn't hurt anything to leave the housing up and available. Maybe still a chance this season.
Don

D'Nese · Wed Apr 18, 2012 5:13 pm

Delma,

I don't think you should take anything down or give up!!!! Many landlords waited for YEARS to attract their first pair. If it doesn't happen this year it might next. I would leave up your housing and hope for the best. One day someone is gonna see your housing and check it out. James and Tony have gotten their first pair after trying for years. I know it frustrating but I know I won't be the only one saying this to you.....keep the faith and keep watching the skies.

razman · Wed Apr 18, 2012 5:29 pm

yeah, i agree, i don't see why you would take the house down and give up....it took me SEVEN YEARS to get martins, and i still only have one pair so far this year, but i am not complaining, i am thrilled to finally have some. hopefully i will get some more this season...the young birds are still returning to Okla and Ks...

Don Strickland · Wed Apr 18, 2012 8:11 pm

They are definitely still arriving in Oklahoma. The new ones have been building nest's in the new T-14 and the other new 16 cavity house I just put up this season. As a matter of fact, they were carrying nesting material today.
Don

James Rieman · Wed Apr 18, 2012 8:12 pm

Delma,

Why forfeit the game when you are only in the 5th inning? You still have almost half the game to go! Last year I didn't see any Martins show any interest in my housing until mid-April! I ended up with three nesting SY pairs which founded my colony. This year, in the past two weeks alone I have added 6 SY birds and 1 ASY male to my colony. I am seeing new sub-adults check out my housing every day. Where I am, right now is prime Martin house hunting season, and I am in the deep south. The best martin attracting time is yet to come for just about the entire rest of the country. The sub-adults are just starting to arrive in your area and will be looking for quality housing! Keep your house up, control S&S, play that dawnsong c/d all day and think positive!

DelmaWhisenhunt · Wed Apr 18, 2012 9:16 pm

Guess I just assumed the perfect place would be so inviting and I would come home to martins. Proves my little brain was wrong. I will not take the house down till Sept. to clean and store and in the morning will plan to play the dawn tape and see if that invites them to come around. So again thanks to all of you for the encouragement. I am still wondering, did not even see one sparrow around the house and when I left they were around everywhere.

DornCounty · Wed Apr 18, 2012 9:16 pm

play the dawnsong if you are not. It will really help.

AnnieM · Wed Apr 18, 2012 11:54 pm

Hi Delma, don't give up! I put my gourds up last feb 2011, did everything said on our forum and in may, 3 martins finally showed up. They came every day for a month, went in the gourds, flew over the house and in general took over my life for the summer...but they never stayed. Everyone knows how that feels. This year on march 12 three Martins showed up- I swear it had to be the same three, and this time they stayed. If you've had martins b4 it's probably harder when you have to start over. Like others have said, keep your housing up. I've seen only one report of subbies in my area, so there's still plenty of time for them to make their way up north. Also there's been devasting storms come thru and that may disperse the pm's.
p.s. - I have all kinds of wildlife and birds on our place but never saw a HOSP til we put up the gourds. If you've been gone a month, it may take a while to sense what's going on with the wildlife. Hang in there!

Bill Hyde · Thu Apr 19, 2012 4:23 am

Hey, Delma!

Let us not forget that martins really enjoy (actually depend on) having humans near their housing. Now that you have returned, maybe some PMs will notice and come visiting. And I agree that playing the Dawn Song or other recorded martin vocalizations may add some "Hey, this is a great place!" to your yard.

Keep on trying. It probably won't make you feel better, but it took 16 years of trying before we had a successful year for martins to fledge babies at our home. All the years of disappointment in not being able to become a landlord were erased from my mind by a single pair of SY martins that chose my yard to raise a family last summer. Don't ever give up. Stay the course and keep trying. Eventually, perhaps even this year, you will have your smile back.

Guest · Thu Apr 19, 2012 5:24 am

Please don't give up. There are PM's that need a home to raise their babies & I can tell you'll make an excellent landlady.

DelmaWhisenhunt · Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:57 am

Thanks so much guys for all the encouraging messages ! Guess I wanted to have a poor me party, thinking when I arrived home surely martins should be here taking note of the new wonderful open location, nothing to stop sailing straight through, and knowing a few had soared over the house and at that time was confronted with two or three sparrows. I haven't seen any blue birds since returning home so maybe they are waiting to see if I return to admire their beauty. So with all the encoragement from you, my posting friends, will do my best to get my spirits renewed and try to attract those beautiful creatures.

Sue P · Thu Apr 19, 2012 7:57 am

Hi Delma,

I really know the awful feeling of not having any martins come when you have done everything possible to get them. It took me SEVENTEEN YEARS to finally get a pair. They have been with us for five years now, and do increase gradually every year.

The dawn song is wonderful. Also, what really seemed to help with attraction our martins were gourds. We spent a small fortune on a T14, painted it, put it up properly, but nothing that summer. Then the next summer I hung gourds from the bottom of the T-14, and bingo --- we finally attracted our first pair. Do continue with the dawn song, and it doesn't hurt to play it all day long as long as there are no martins there. But try the gourds. They seemed to be the trick for us getting martins!!

Hang in there --- it really takes time. Remember 17 years!!

Sue P

Dave Reynolds · Thu Apr 19, 2012 8:23 am

Delma -- Everyone is telling you to keep the faith, and the houses up. They are correct. I know how hard it is after you have done every thing you can think of right. I have been at this for some time and I still don't have any Martins, but I know one day I will. Hang in there..

Sue -- Thanks for the note to Delma. It does take some time for some of us, Seventeen years is a long time, but it paid off for you.

Dave -- in Little Hocking, Ohio

John A Green Jr · Thu Apr 19, 2012 11:04 am

Delma,
Listen to Sue P, I to had no luck with houses. I put up a nice house and they came by but didn't stay. It was into early May last year before I got a hold of four gourds. The same day a couple checked them out and stayed the rest of the summer and fledged babies. Even after moving the house and gourds and adding a lot more gourds they returned this year and brought friends. I still can't get them to stay in that house but I offer it. I currently have between 7 and 10 staying every night now. Get them gourds and get some birds. Good luck and don't give up.

parkerdes · Thu Apr 19, 2012 11:20 am

If I remember...your son is near my area & it took me 6 long years to finally get 2 pair. I had a late ASY pair in mid April 2006 that didn't return in '07 or '08(probably went back to their original site)! I moved my housing & offered more variety!
My neighbor down the street had an ASY pair in 2010 & didn't have any last year! So far they have 2 ASY pairs & we are just starting to see only a couple of SYs so far. I have only 1 SY female that is paired with an ASY male & an SY male that is totally abused by my ASY males. Not sure if he will be successful in attracting a mate...I still have a couple of ASY males that aren't paired up. I also saw at least 10 martins circling my site last night that weren't my residents! It's not too late until mid to late May here in North Texas so it is a week or more later for you in Oklahoma!!!
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER give up!

Joe Creason KY · Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:35 pm

Delma, never give up my friend. I tried for 20 yes 20 years before I got my first pair. After that it has been amazing how God has blessed our home with such a feathery family.

Sometimes it is hard for others to talk about their martins and for yourself to not be able to attract them. I can reemember when I was trying so hard, but nothing seem to help. Finally I had a pair to come and stay one year and fledged 4 or 5, I can't remember. Since then my colony has flourished each year.

Please Please Please never give up, because for sure it will never happen.

Leave that housing up.

Joe

DelmaWhisenhunt · Thu Apr 19, 2012 3:48 pm

Yes, my son lives south of Weatherford, Tx. and hoping every day to look out and see martins again. A time or two he thought that he spotted a couple soaring over the house, but didn't land. He spends long hours at work and was his delight to come home late in the evening, rest on a hammock at the patio and watch the martins with all their splendor. Guess that is why he built such a nice place for them, his appreciation for their beautiful show time. Maybe it will happen again.

DelmaWhisenhunt · Thu Apr 19, 2012 8:08 pm

While my yard help was working this afternoon I spotted a couple of martins soaring over and hurriedly hooked up the dawn-song and almost immediately got their attention and of the sparrows as well. The martins soared over three or four times. Thanks for all the encouragement, if the storm misses us tomorrow will play the tape again and see what happens.
Have to admit all of this gave me a shot in the arm again. The young man got a bang out of watching and even to watch the sparrow attack the tape player.

Sue P · Fri Apr 20, 2012 5:41 am

I am so happy you attracted some martins with your tape player, Wilma. Do try hanging gourds from your martin housing. Do you have a way to elminate the sparrows? (Eliminate is a polite way to say "kill the sparrows")

Anyway, you know there are martins around, and just keep playing that tape player with the dawn song. Next we want to hear about the martins landing on your housing!!

Sue P