Hi everyone! My pole is currently in a sleeve, surrounded by concrete in the ground. All I need to do is get the gourds up!
However, I just have a few questions on actually getting PM's here.
1)Is playing a CD like Dawnsong 100% required? I don't know how reasonable it would be for me to blast bird sounds out of my house for a few hours every morning. The neighbors might think I'm crazy.
2)I know birds do not have a good sense of smell, but would not cleaning gourds that previously been used by PM's be of benefit? I already cleaned the ones I got (thanks Burt!) but not thoroughly, and hope that this could help a little bit.
3)Somebody said in Zach's post that smearing mud by the entrance could help attract subadults. Is this effective?
1. Playing audio recordings of martin vocalizations isn't necessary. It may help, but also may be harmful, my opinion, if over used. Many landlords believe in it. I'm apprehensive, except in circumstances maybe of low population areas of martins -- to maybe bring them in for a look. But it won't make them stay, can attract hawks and I suspect keeps them nervous and agitated. Martins flying high overhead can easily spot a gourd rack, and far better for them to drop down to investigate housing. I've noticed when one is playing audio and a martin comes, it's looking for the audio source, not the housing. At least don't overuse it, and if you begin to get visiting martins, turn it off.
2. Martins can't smell, we think, but martins seem to favor old nests, and will choose cavities first with old nests. Unfortunately old nests harbor mites, but a gourd with some old nest material and no. 3, with some mud smeared near the entrance may make a female in particular feel more comfortable and stay. Understand that you first want to attract a male and he's less fussy. he then brings in females for a look, and they are nervous and may be reassured if the place looks lived in, that maybe martins the previous year were successful in fledging young. Pre-nest material you can add, such as dry white pine needles patted down flat, and then smearing a little mud (may or may not help) may be adequate.
So I play the dawn song and I have neighbors about 50 feet away and they haven't said anything yet but anyway. The dawn song pretty much says to the martins "hey there is a thriving colony living here come and live/visit here".
The mud (which I did smear on the cavity holes and in the cavity) show that other martins have lived here successfully.
I also have 2 martin decoys on my house and all of these things put together show that there is a thriving colony living here and other martins would be interested in living there too.
Good luck, this is my first year trying to get martins to.
16 Years Old
Not a ideal location but still going to try!!!
I also have been playing dawn song and daytime chatter for the past week and the last two days had lots of action,a asy male has been coming and going and bringing males and females with him ,my point to this is ,none of the females would land on my house and gourds until today I forgot to put cd on repeat so it was turned off and both times they landed nothing was playing ,don't think it is a coincidence so although I am a newbie I agree with John that it can be a good tool to get them noticing your sight but in my personal experience once you get a bird coming regularly ,cut down on the playing a bunch ,prob won't play mine tomorrow at all as asy male is staying the night in a gourd at my site ,yeah happy days
Hope you all have a very eventful and happy weekend and good luck to all
Mick
Martin Colony History: The 1972 St. Agnes flood wiped out all the Martins in my area. One day, in 1997-98, 5 or 6 Martins landed on the power wires crossing my back yard. I had no house for them. They kept coming back day after day. We got a martin house a few weeks later & they have been coming back every year since. I average 12-15 pair per year.
mikeybotta44 wrote:Hi everyone! My pole is currently in a sleeve, surrounded by concrete in the ground. All I need to do is get the gourds up!
However, I just have a few questions on actually getting PM's here.
1)Is playing a CD like Dawnsong 100% required? I don't know how reasonable it would be for me to blast bird sounds out of my house for a few hours every morning. The neighbors might think I'm crazy.
2)I know birds do not have a good sense of smell, but would not cleaning gourds that previously been used by PM's be of benefit? I already cleaned the ones I got (thanks Burt!) but not thoroughly, and hope that this could help a little bit.
3)Somebody said in Zach's post that smearing mud by the entrance could help attract subadults. Is this effective?
Thank you!
I can't offer advice on dawnsong...never had to use it.
However I would highly suggest you make your housing looked used. Martins (ASY & SY both) prefer to use a cavity that has that "lived in look". So yes smear some mud around the outside & just inside. Add some nesting materials.
Martin Colony History: Started trying to attract purple martins in 2012! It's finally happened in 2017! 5 years!!! ASY male and SY female came May 1st, fledged 5 babies!
I played mine last year until ASY male showed up! He never did attract a female! Once martins know where your at they will visit on there own! I've been playing for very short time in morning and by 8:00 it turns off! I play low volume. I think birds are still arriving heavy in my area because in town it's like martin heaven! Wasn't like that last weekend. I do agree with John those cd's are made for areas that have low population of martins!
I smeared mud and made a couple mud dams, I smeared mud inside on a few of the gourds! Good luck!
Thank you everyone! I'm going to have to pass on Dawnsong, hopefully they spot my gourds. I will definitely smear some mud and add nesting materials though!
