First successful brood, very happy!

[Faith]

Hello all,

I'm happy that in my first year of being a Purple Martin landlord I have had two PM pairs, and two nests. During what was almost the entire time, there were also two HS nests on each side of the house. I can only see one side of the house, and was thrilled a little over two weeks ago when I saw two of the baby martins with their adorable mouths open. I know that you all understand how wonderful it is to watch these amazing birds! I loved watching the parents bringing the babies insects to eat, and my husband set up a telescope so I could look directly into the compartment where the babies were. The sparrows left a few weeks ago, but will come over to the house from time to time. I don't know if there was a successful PM brood on the side that I can't easily see from my house, but it was basically the same situation there when I was able to see, sparrows and PM nests, one on top and one on the bottom.

As far as I have seen, there are two babies that have fledged, but I'm not sure if any have fledged from the other side of the house. This is my first year doing this, so I'm brand new with this. When my husband takes the house down, I do expect that we'll find other babies that didn't survive. I am also prepared that some of them may have been killed by the sparrows, but I am hoping not. Like I mentioned before, it appears that the PMs and house sparrows were cohabitating, and the PM nest on the side of the house I can see was guarded by a parent most of the time.

I know the PMs are getting ready to migrate soon, and I don't know if any even slept in their house last night. There were a lot of them flying around last night and then they were all in the trees. Then I looked it up, and sure enough, they'll be leaving soon. I'm in Long Island NY and was really hoping I would have them here until late August. I was glad to see them on the house today, and was just watching the two babies flying and landing on the house, with one poking it's head into the old sparrow's nest. I did cry, because I'll miss them so much. I can't believe how much I'll miss them, but we did have a successful brood, and those two little fledglings flew! How I wish I would have seen that for the first time, not for lack of trying and watching lol, but they flew. And, I look forward to seeing them again.

[Dan G]

Congratulations! For us newbies, the first couple fledged is so exciting. As you grow, I hope it doesn’t turn into ‘work’. I think I would deal with those sparrows. They will eventually compete, and probably win, against your martins.
We successfully fledged two for the first time ever after 11 years of trying. They disappeared a few days later, but we are still hearing some( in central PA) high overhead occasionally.
We now have to wait 9 months.

[brent]

I love your excitement! It is a passion. To be a part of such collective effort is worth all we do for these magnificent birds. I love them. I agree with Dan. You need to address those sparrows. They cannot be allowed to nest in your martin houses. If they stay they will take over. Brent

[randyM]

I'd also like to chime in and say Congratulations! I'll also emphasize the importance of house sparrow control. Even though martins and house sparrows seemed to coexist at your site this year, next year will likely be different. With your martin nesting success this year, it is likely you will have more nesting martins and more nesting sparrows next year. With a limited number of nest cavities, competition for those cavities will be stronger next year and the sparrows will almost always win that battle by pecking martin eggs or killing nestlings when the martin parents of that cavity are away. That martin pair will then leave, the sparrows will take over that compartment, and the process will repeat itself again and again until you have a colony of 100% house sparrows. It can be challenging at many levels to control house sparrows, but to keep a martin colony strong and fruitful, it must be done.

Cheers!

Randy

[Birdiegirl]

Faith,

So VERY happy for you! I will never forget my first pair of martins, truly something to celebrate. There's lots of amazing advice on this forum, including how to control sparrows. Don't ever hesitate to ask for help. Sparrows aren't an issue for me, but starlings are- and the how-to this forum has been invaluable to learning how to control those critters and ensure the safety of the martins.

Congratulations again- and here's to many future years of success!

[Dave Reynolds]

.. Congratulations... With your success,, That first pair is so exciting, and it never goes away.. One thing is for sure, you must be ready for more Martins to come in the future. Seems like everyone goes from one pair to two pair and then the colony starts to explode.. 4 then 8 and so on.. Wishing you success in 2026..

Dave

[MY FYN 79]

Congrats!

This was the first year for us to fledge Martins after trying since 2019, so we share the excitement!

Stay after the sparrows, you really can make a dent. People don’t believe that but it’s true!