Using Mirrors in gourds.

[Guest]

To all Purple martin enthusiasts I have tried for 6 years to attract martins. I tried about everything. I would have visitors early in the spring, but they would never nest. So after trying everything else, after trying my 7th year I put mirrors in a few of the gourds, and I finally had 2 pair of martins nest and fledge young. I think that it was the mirrors that made the martins feel safe enough to stay and nest. What do you think??

[Emil Pampell-Tx]

Jeff, I am glad that you got some martins, that is the very best thing that happened. There should be a lot of martins in your area!

I have never used mirrows, so I don't really know if they help, but I do not think that I would ever consider using them. I would say that practically every colony anywhrre in N America was started without mirrows. Some people waited many years just as you did. I think its more of a coincidence than anything else.

I don't mean to upset you by saying that. New landlords that have not gotten martins get desperate, and they try anything that they hear or believe. If we could have a poll, you probably would find many strange reasons that people think that helped them get martins. This is good! I want people to try new things, as this really helps the person trying to get martins stay interested. It makes them feel good, so if that is the result of all of these various things, then I am all for everyone trying anything that they think may help. Who am I to say that it didn't help?

We can only learn new things if people try new ideas. I have heard the mirrow story before, so I am glad that you like the idea.

[John Miller]

Jeff

Welcome to the Forum. I hope you can post this spring that you've gone from two to a dozen pairs.

We know that martins foremost want to be where there are martins. Maybe if a martin looked in a hole and saw itself in a mirror, it would think that the compartment was already occupied and decide it better fight for it or take the one next door. Maybe it was just finally time you got martins, but the attraction technique is an intriguing idea.

John Miller

[Guest]

Jeff,

PMCA literature mentions the use of mirrors as an attraction technique. I did a search on the word "mirrors" on the PMCA's home page and got 23 results. Some were about uses of mirrors other than attraction, though.

Tony

[Al Denton]

One of my favorite saying is "Don't knock it till you try it" I tried mirrows and they didn't do the trick for me. Some believe in them. I do recall seeing mirrows in bird cages before. I guess the purpose is to make a bird feel the company of another bird, or could it send another message Al

[Matt F.]

Another benefit to using mirrors that I've read about, is that the more shiny and reflective surfaces you have in and around the nesting cavity, the less starlings like it.