Martins disappearance

[Jaique]

Just a warning to all, but especially new landlords. Last year, a nest check showed a house full of nests and eggs, but no PMs in sight. They never returned. After posting here, I realized the culprit was probably an owl, hawk or crow, all of which are here in abundance.

This spring, 4 martins were spotted at different times flying near or landing on the house. They were 2 males and two females, so could have seen them twice, therefore maybe only two birds. Anyway, none stayed around.

Two weeks ago, I spotted a hawk, sitting on the Martin house. Obviously, he was waiting on dinner. So, I have come to the conclusion that last years disaster was probably caused by a hawk.

Evidently, Even with a better protected house, the martins are still afraid of their old home. It's coming down and more guards are going to be added and I'm going to convert it from 12 to 6 rooms so the cavities will be larger and the nests not able to be reached by hawk talons.

So, don't put up a Martin house without equipping it with every kind of barrier you can find! We get attached to these guys and it is heart breaking when something like this happens. I still enjoy the forum, hearing success stories and seeing pix, even though I won't have any to share. Hopefully, next year will be successful, but if I am not 100% certain, I will leave the house down. I am not going to provide a smorgasbord for these killer birds!

[Courtney-NC]

Hi Jaique,

Sorry to hear about the hawk, but good to know you may have discovered your culprit. What kind of hawk caging are you using now? You could post a pic of what you have up there now and perhaps you'll get some more feedback.

[Berndog]

Jaique
Gotcha ! Thanks for the advise,take all i can get.I hope things work out for you & your martins...Berndog

[april57]

it sure sounds like a hawk attack. Our house we have has overhangs and is owl protected. The cavities are deep and the martins all make their nest in the back 1/3. Sometimes they build mud up by the front hole also. Just an idea of what we have.
PMC2000