How has this cold weather goin to affect the birds numbers

[MichaelH]

Ok I got thinking it will be About 4 weeks give or take a day or two since my first bird arrived and out of all that time I can count on one hand the amount of good days there has been for them to feed on there natural prey ,I am up to 9 and all are still alive but been thinking about all the birds that have arrived and are still coming that have had to deal with the snow cold and rainy crappy weather we have had for the last 4 weeks ,how many could of perished on there way and also some that got to there home site to people who are not As dedicated as some of us and don’t supplement feed them and prob don’t even know they have arrived I have seen those run down sites before ,only time will tell if the number of birds in the northern county’s suffer a decline in there total numbers this year with this crazy weather ,I know all our friends on this forum do the best they can For our feathered friends ,hopefully some of you will give me your input to something that has been on my ,and probably some of your minds to over the last couple of weeks

[Craig Haddox]

I have 2 pair here and should have around 20-25 martins here by now.

[John Miller]

I'm switching to chickens. ha. Ground here is covered in sleet. But, supposed to get into the 60s tomorrow...I might change my mind.

It is stressful. I've only seen four in Forest Park, St. Louis, and usually would be a dozen at least by now. I don't know whether arrivals have perished or stalled. Weather is the number one reason for martin mortality, but martins don't all migrate at once and even if I had 10 birds now, that would account for less than 10 percent of the total number of birds that usually nest in the park each year.

Let's see how it goes.
John Miller

[BillieJR]

I prefer to think they are just taking their time, because of the weather. I'd rather look at it that way thank think of them perishing in this midwest bad weather.

I saw the weather lastnight, for the first time in awhile. and the normal temps should be about 53 daytime and 39 nights.......yesterday it was in the 30s daytime and in the teens lastnhight. Not good - and the next 10 days don't look any better for here. Plus they are predicting some rain and maybe snow tonight and tomorrow/tomorrow night. :(

[Larry A Kronemeyer]

Mick
We are about 60miles south of you. Martins have been here since March 15. Head count is 12+/-. That's about normal. I've talked to two other area LL that have martins. They don't feed them although we've encouraged them to do so. Maybe they have no birds now since the weather has been brutal here. Marginal feeding opportunities, cold, rain, wind. Yesterday afternoon we had rain, sleet, snow. It's 27°out right now and 9birds are huddled on their porches. The days ahead look only slightly better in temperature but rain is always in the forecast.
We've been feeding the martins mealworms. Putting piles of them into their compartments. It's keeping them alive, I'm sure of it. I wonder about the other early birds. I seriously doubt they have survived with these last few extreme days. Some area housing isn't even up and opened yet. Not so enthusiastic LLs have little ambition to brave the weather to open or put up their housing. Sad state for the martins.
Everything is so hungry. All birds are struggling, except those darn starlings. I can't even use the b&b as all other species want and need food.
This winter came late and has been relentless. We will continue to feed the martins. Later in the day we will lower the houses and pile in the mealworms. Too cold right now to send them out needlessly. I'm hoping I'm feeding someone else's scouts too.

[Lizzie]

My thoughts, which will likely not be popular.....
if the cold weather is delaying migration....that's a good thing. It doesn't hurt to have delayed migrations more than it hurts to keep making wild birds dependent on humans for, not only housing now, but for food, nesting materials, extra calcium, chemical protection against mites, and an ever-increasing array of their needs.

My first pair mated late in the season, and their young fledged on July 4.
That was in Texas summer heat.
I love wildlife, and love birds, but the more they can retain their natural proclivities, the better for the species overall.

And yes.....I built houses with deep cavities and I put owl guards on the housing, and predator guards on the poles, but my intervention will stop there. So....if I see birds migrating late with the seasonal changes, I breathe a sigh of relief that they still follow those instincts.

[jpp77]

Well said Lizzie

[MichaelH]

Good to hear from you larry n Judy hope they hang in there for another week surely it will pick up soon it sure is a testing hobby isn’t it .
Hi Lizzie I don’t think that we are making them dependent on us for food I have tried feeding them in the summer when there natural food is available and they won’t feed from me so they do revert back to there instinct and natural ways when food is available and I also think that there is not any proof that they return early to a site that supplement feeds just because they know they will get fed ,they come when there instinct tells them to ,now why they do arrive early goes to show they cannot predict or rather sense how the weather will be when they arrive ,I agree I would rather see them arrive here when the weather is better for them ,but even may and June can be wet and not good martin weather ,they have been relaying on us for years to provide housing and if we hadn’t they would probably be a very small number of martins left for us to enjoy,so I will do my bit to ensure I can save even one bird by any means so me ,you and our fellow landlords and there children will get the pleasure of seeing this amazing bird ,.
Glad you had succes with you pair and great they raised young I bet that Texas heat can be brutal for them hope we all get many more this season .and the weather plays in there favour
Hi john yes I got chickens to and they are much easier lol but they just don’t sing like a martin lol,hope it improves at your sites soon had 3 new birds come in today yep even with the snow we had last night they are persistent if they want to come they will come yep only time will tell thanks all for the input and comments

[Emil Pampell-Tx]

My numbers have been down by maybe 30% this year, and have not seen an SY martins yet. We had a whole lot of hawk pressure so that may be the reason. The migrating Coopers and Sharpies have moved on, so maybe the numbers will increase.