New (Wannabe) Landlord in 2018 - Attraction Plan

Welcome to the internet's gathering place for Purple Martin enthusiasts
Post Reply
mrh218
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Jan 04, 2018 3:24 pm
Location: Mt. Juliet, TN

I have been lurking and reading about purple martins and now I'm excited to get my setup for 2018! I have never worked with PM before, so my goal is to create a setup that is most attractive. I have read a lot about attraction techniques, but still have a couple questions.

A little about my property and planned location:
- I just bought this house in the summer. There are 2 existing poles from the previous owner, but no houses.
- I'm about 25 miles east of Nashville, TN.
- The previous owner had a colony, but it has been at least 2 years (probably 3) and I don't know any other details.
- I plan to use the existing location, but may replace the poles. The location is 50' from a shed, 80' from my house and 42' from the closest tree. Other trees are about 120' away.
- I have seen just about every common PM predator on my property in the 7 months we have been here. :-(
Please feel free to provide feedback about my location as I am open to adjusting it if necessary.

My main remaining questions are:
- What housing should I buy? We are attracted to houses like the T-14, but also considering gourds as attraction to the PM is my primary goal.
- When should I open the house? I know my area can expect adults to arrive around March 1st, but it can take much longer for the subadults to nest and I don't want to open too soon.

This site is great! I'm thankful for the help I have already received here and excited to start this new journey!
Top
Dave Reynolds
Posts: 2442
Joined: Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Little Hocking, Oh.
Martin Colony History: Satellite Site “Oxbow Golf Course”..
2018 - 15 Pair, 36 Fledged
2019 - 26 Pair, 97 Fledged
2020 - 30 Pair, 137 Fledged
2021 - 30 Pair, 144 Fledged
2022 - 27 Pair, 125 Fledged
2023 - 31 Pair, 130 Fledged
2024 - 41 Pair, 198 Fledged
2025 - 44 Pair, 168 Fledged

Home Site "Little Hocking, Ohio".
2019 - 1 Pair, 5 Fledged
2020 - 1 Pair, 4 Fledged
2021 - 8 Pair, 36 Fledged
2022 - 13 Pair, 46 Fledged
2023 - 16 Pair, 84 Fledged
2024 - 22 Pair, 104 Fledged
2025 - 28 Pair, 83 Fledged

MRH218 ,,, Welcome to the Forum,,, There are many people here that will be able to help you.. Sence the previous owner may have had a colony, you are in a good position. You will find that some here like Gourds, some like T-14’s and other like metal houses.. Any of these are fine.. Keep checking here from time to time, because there are other landlords here that will give you more information ,,, Good Luck...

Dave
Last edited by Dave Reynolds on Fri Jan 05, 2018 7:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
PMCA Member
Little Hocking, Ohio
Top
RAMSMARTINS
Posts: 20
Joined: Thu Dec 29, 2016 7:22 pm
Location: HOUSTON, TX

As far as what housing to use.........scout around your area for existing colonies and see what type of housing they are using. Use the same to start your colony...........you can eventually transition your colony to housing you prefer if you want.
Top
C.C.Martins
Posts: 3368
Joined: Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:15 am
Location: Corpus Christi Tx
Martin Colony History: 2016- Visitors.
2017- 5 pair. 15 fledged
2018- 18 pair. 85 fledged
2019- 17 pair. 81 fledged
2020- 25 pair. 111 fledged
2021- 28 pair. 118 fledged
2022- 33 pair. 151 fledged
2023- 33 pair. 165 fledged
2024- 40 pair. 185 fledged
2025- 40 pair. 181 fledged
HOSP:
Home colony: mix natural, super, Troyer and excluder gourds, enlarged compartment house. All SREH.

Satellite colony: Oso Bay Preserve: 49 PMCA excluder gourds; 16 room Lonestar Goliad with Modified Excluder entrances.
2019: Visitors
2020: 3 pair, 11 fledged
2021: 10 pair, 30 fledged
2022: 11 pair, 35 fledged
2023: 18 pair, 101 fledged
2024: 39 pair, 181 fledged
2025: 51 pair, 216 fledged
PMCA member

Good luck this year and Welcome! Probably a good idea to replace the poles, be terrible to have the things fall over. Start new if necessary, a good system comes with poles anyway. That is good advice on the scouting trip, see what the others use and copy it. Do the "what do the neighbors have" homework, knock on some doors, make a decision and Id get them up fairly quickly, the season is around the corner. Why not a combination of the T14 and gourds? Give the birds a choice. :grin:
A good house sparrow is a dead house sparrow.
HOSP: 17. Starlings: 23
Top
flyin-lowe
Posts: 3789
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2006 8:49 am
Location: Indiana/Henry Co.

If you have the skills you could build your own T14 and save considerably. I bought all the wood for mine (10-15 years ago) for around $100.00. I actually used Hemlock which came from TN or KY. I bought a 21 foot pice of 4 1/2 inch galvanized pipe and used it for my pole. A little elbow grease but I have less the $200.00 in the entire set up. If DIY is not an option then see what others in your area have and try that style housing. As far as when to open housing go to the scout arival map on this site and look back at past years and you can see when Martin's start ariving in your area. At a new colony site I would keep the housing closed up until you see Martin's flying around or landing on your housing. I would also go ahead and get a couple houses or gourds for blue birds and free swallows. Many people in this part of the country struggle more with tree swallows then any other "predators". Lastly get a copy of the dawn song and a way to play it, it is a powerful tool to draw them in.
2026 HOSP 27
2025 62 pair HOSP 20
2024 60 pair, HOSP 44
2023 60+ pair, HOSP 8
2022 60 nests with 262 eggs, HOSP 14
2021 62 pair, HOSP 9
2020 42 nest, HOSP 8
2019- 31 pair
2018- 15 pair 49 fledged
2017 3 SY pair, 12 eggs , fledged 10. 4 additional lone SY's
2016 1 pair fledged 4
2015 Visitors
2014 Visitors
2013 Moved 6 miles, 1 pair fledged 2.
2012 30 pair fledged 100.
2011 12 pair 43 fledged.
2010 5 pair 14 fledged.
Top
mrh218
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Jan 04, 2018 3:24 pm
Location: Mt. Juliet, TN

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions! I had noticed several houses around already and found some more today while applying your advice and scouting the area. It seems the houses are popular and I will keep an eye out to see if people add gourds as spring comes.

I also noticed a lot of blue bird/swallow houses as well. I thought I would want to avoid those as it may attract tree swallows, but I guess the PM house will attract them anyway. Is the idea to allow swallows to use these other houses as the PM house is off limits?

I would like to build my own, but I'm not sure I can get it done in time due to the work I need to do in and around the people house.
Top
Archer
Posts: 786
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 1:09 pm
Location: Manitoba/Altona
Martin Colony History: six pair in 2014, have grown to 52 pairs in 2017.

You're on the right track when you provide tree swallow and bluebird housing. Placement is the critical issue due to the tendencies of the swallows and bluebirds. You want to attract them to a nest site near your martins housing. Seems ironic and counter productive as you do not want them on your martin housing. The tree swallows and bluebirds have a tolerance limit to others of their same species. By establishing them near your martin housing, they will drive away others out to their tolerance limit, When the martin housing is within this tolerance limit, it protects the housing from being occupied by the same species. The correct procedure is well explained in the pdf file. https://www.purplemartin.org/uploads/me ... cy-377.pdf
2011- first year trying, a few visitors.
2012-One ASY pair, raised two young, lots of subby visitors. So thankfull.
2013-daily subby visits.
2014-Six SY pairs
2015-18 pair, 83 fledglings
2016-36 pair, 147 fledglings
2017-52 pairs, 192 fledglings.
2018-60 pair, 246 fledglings.
2019-59 pair, 238 fledglings.
2020-62 pair.
2021-65 pair.
2022-63 pair.
2023-60 pair
2024-62 pair
Top
Dave Reynolds
Posts: 2442
Joined: Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Little Hocking, Oh.
Martin Colony History: Satellite Site “Oxbow Golf Course”..
2018 - 15 Pair, 36 Fledged
2019 - 26 Pair, 97 Fledged
2020 - 30 Pair, 137 Fledged
2021 - 30 Pair, 144 Fledged
2022 - 27 Pair, 125 Fledged
2023 - 31 Pair, 130 Fledged
2024 - 41 Pair, 198 Fledged
2025 - 44 Pair, 168 Fledged

Home Site "Little Hocking, Ohio".
2019 - 1 Pair, 5 Fledged
2020 - 1 Pair, 4 Fledged
2021 - 8 Pair, 36 Fledged
2022 - 13 Pair, 46 Fledged
2023 - 16 Pair, 84 Fledged
2024 - 22 Pair, 104 Fledged
2025 - 28 Pair, 83 Fledged

Archer --- Thanks so much for the web site.. I totally forgot to pass it on to MRH218..

MRH218 ... Please add this web site to your Getting starting information...

https://www.purplemartin.org/uploads/me ... cy-377.pdf

Dave
PMCA Member
Little Hocking, Ohio
Top
sugarcreek
Posts: 252
Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2016 10:43 am
Location: Sugarcreek, Ohio
Martin Colony History: 2016 First Yr.

On this website you can buy the book, (purple martin journey) best book i've read yet...worth buying
16 - 14 Cavities 4 Act. Ne 9 fledged, 2.25 Fl. per Act. Ne
17 - 36 Cavities 18 Act. Ne 65 Fledged, 3.61 Fl. per Act. Ne
18 - 54 Cavities 43 Act. Ne 169 Fledged, 3.93 Fl. per Act. Ne
19 - 108 Cavities 67 Act. Ne 209 Fledged, 3.12 Fl. per Act. Ne
20 - 108 Cavities 72 Act. Ne 243 Fledged, 3.38 Fl. per Act. Ne
21 - 112 Cavities 91 Act. Ne 313 Fledged, 3.44 Fl. per Act. Ne
22 - 114 Cavities 101 Act Ne 355 Fledged, 3.51 Fl. per Act. Ne
Top
MartinStudent
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:24 pm
Location: Mississippi

Hi all! I'm also NEW to PM's and have been scouring the forum over the last week. I already feed/take care of other wildlife on our property including BlueBirds. Why not PMs? I've been reading up on them over the last few years and finally feel ready to take the plunge, but I want to do everything right from the outset. I just purchased my first real PM house from PMCA, Predator Guard and Owl Guard for the BirdsChoice WaterEdge Suites with XL rooms,Songbird Magnet, Mealworms, Pine Straw and Oyster Shells. When I bought my home it came with an old run down aluminum hexagon house in the back yard. Birds visited every year but no takers except Blue Birds. I'm taking down the old house (some BBs used) and putting up the new house and not opening until I see PMs. I'm also putting up another new hexagon PM house with all the same precautions nearby for variety. I plan on using member tips and making the houses look already used and play the Songbird Magnet when I see them.
Anything else I might need to do to be a good PM landlord? All advice is appreciated. We have 20 acres in Mississippi. Most of it is treed on both sides of the property but there is a direct fly in from the west. We have about 5 acres open that we keep mowed down with a few trees scattered about. We plan on putting the house out in the open area about 30ft from our house with flyaway access all around and at least 40ft away from trees. I'm prepared with food for them in bad weather. Thanks so much!!
Animal Lover. Voice for animals. Purple Martin Landlord Wannabe. Proponent for large cavities. :grin:
Top
Post Reply

Return to “Purple Martin Forum”