i need some help !!!

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jeff gregory
Posts: 105
Joined: Sun May 28, 2006 4:45 pm
Location: little chicago/sc

we have a lot of rain here in upstate south carolina for days at a time. anyway yesterday i found a dead female in one of my gourds and i just now found a male [a mature one] flopping arond i didnt see any noticable injuries but he couldnt fly so i put him in the back of my truck so he could stay dry. i cant get no insects till tommorrow what can i feed him ? i heard they will eat scrambled eggs any special way to fix them ? i am having a hec of a time with starlings this year!! do you think they have anything to do with it?
thanks,
jeff gregory
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jeff gregory
Posts: 105
Joined: Sun May 28, 2006 4:45 pm
Location: little chicago/sc

i just found another one dead in my back yard. it was abut 100 feet away from the gourd rack
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rrmartins
Posts: 1441
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2010 8:04 am
Location: Round Rock, TX

What kind of entrances do you have, sounds like starlings are killing them, or they are starving from all the rain and not eating. Any marks on them?
2021
T14
10 Pair
49 Fledged
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Trishy
Posts: 451
Joined: Thu Jun 12, 2008 10:25 am
Location: Wisconsin/Shell Lake
Martin Colony History: Colony started in 2009 with 2 pair.
Currently I have 3 gourd racks with 24 gourds. One gourd rack will be for sy arrivals only.
Bo Eleven gourds 20

You can either hard boil the eggs, or scramble them. Cut them in 1/4" - 1/2" pieces. Sounds like they may be starving if it has been several days of rain, or weather bad enough that bugs aren't flying. Try to feed the one in the truck, and then put some eggs on the porches of the housing. If they are not trained to take supplemental feeding it may be hard to get them to eat. Just keep trying though.
Trish
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CraigMo.
Posts: 1480
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2004 12:30 pm
Location: Missouri/Lone Jack
Martin Colony History: Active since 2003

My guess is they are starving to death. Try to train your martins to take crickets, eggs etc from you. I started flipping crickets from my deck and they learned that this was a feeding area. After that I started flipping boiled eggs to have them eat. eggs which are cheaper and easier to flip, then I flipped a few eggs and then placed the rest on the deck railing and they learned to eat off deck which is easier nd you can leave eggs on railing before you go to work. Sorry and good luck
Craig
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jeff gregory
Posts: 105
Joined: Sun May 28, 2006 4:45 pm
Location: little chicago/sc

hey craig,
do you cut the egg in small pieces i assume. do they eat the yoke too ?
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CraigMo.
Posts: 1480
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2004 12:30 pm
Location: Missouri/Lone Jack
Martin Colony History: Active since 2003

Yes i cut them up around the size of a green pea but they will take larger peices. they seem to love eggs. good luck and keep us posted , oh yeah they eat the yolk too. You will see yellow in their poop too.
craig
Last edited by CraigMo. on Mon May 06, 2013 8:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Guest

Hello Jeff, this is John down in the Lake Cooley area. Sorry to hear you are having problems with trying to feed your birds. This rain has been bad lately but I've been lucky to have no more that two days in a row. Sun. was real rainy but my birds stayed home and in their gourds all day. Thank goodness the sun was out today so they could feed.

Crescent openings is the only good solution to the starling problem. All mine are crescent now and that keeps them out.

Let me know if I can help.

John Wolfey
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