Will martins "handle" finches?
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Guest
Have a finch that is checking out the house I just raised and am wondering if my returning PM adult will stand up to the finch? Or do I treat the finch the same as I would and DO treat sparrows? Thanks!
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Steve Kroenke
- Posts: 4342
- Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2003 6:49 pm
- Location: Louisiana/Logansport
Your returning martins probably will not have any problems holding their own with the house finch. I have observed established martins easily chase away and evict house finches at my previous martin colony in Tallahassee, Florida. House finches are protected species so you can't legally harm them. Finches also like to nest in hanging baskets under porches. The male has a pretty song.
Here is a link to an article of mine describing a ferocious battle between a female martin and some house finches:
http://www.purplemartin.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=68
Steve
Here is a link to an article of mine describing a ferocious battle between a female martin and some house finches:
http://www.purplemartin.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=68
Steve
Sioux,
House finches commonly try to nest in "unoccupied" purple martin houses here in the Texas Panhandle. They appear to be intimidated by martins at an established colony. That being said, I wouldn't let a pair get established at a site without martins, because an established pair of house finches might get the best of timid SY martins that you hope will colonize new housing.
While running sparrow traps in martin housing, I have caught and banded house finches. 100% of the time, the house finches quickly moved on, not to be a futher problem. Although it is not legal to trap and dispatch house finches (a protected species), should you catch and let one go, it is my experience (band data) that they will go away.
At an unistablished site, they can be pretty persistant if your sole means of discouraging them is removing nesting materials. By the way, in my state, authorities told me that you could remove nesting materials from martin houses, up to the point that a completed nest exists. They can build a nest so fast that I had to remove nesting materials no less than every 2-3 days.
House finches commonly try to nest in "unoccupied" purple martin houses here in the Texas Panhandle. They appear to be intimidated by martins at an established colony. That being said, I wouldn't let a pair get established at a site without martins, because an established pair of house finches might get the best of timid SY martins that you hope will colonize new housing.
While running sparrow traps in martin housing, I have caught and banded house finches. 100% of the time, the house finches quickly moved on, not to be a futher problem. Although it is not legal to trap and dispatch house finches (a protected species), should you catch and let one go, it is my experience (band data) that they will go away.
At an unistablished site, they can be pretty persistant if your sole means of discouraging them is removing nesting materials. By the way, in my state, authorities told me that you could remove nesting materials from martin houses, up to the point that a completed nest exists. They can build a nest so fast that I had to remove nesting materials no less than every 2-3 days.
Get you a plastic hanging pot, buy some of thoughs cheap artifical flowers at Walmark or Dollar store (I think I've got about 9 bucks in mine). put some dirt in there for weight on top of the styrofoam. polk in a bunch of pretty assortment of flower leaving the middle hollowed out. I also put some of that plastic grassy looking stuff over the dirt for a protective moisture barrier.
Bam! instant House Finch house. They will take to it like ducks to water. They prefer to be on there own (Finches for company that is) and as Steve said love the hanging baskets. I have three around my front part of my house and all three have had Finches in them each year. They have one of the prettiest song bird songs and are quite interesting to watch them feed there babies right out side the window.
They will occasions land on my PM perches and I initially I thought they were sparrows. I get out the 12X scope and see that they are not. Now I can tell by there flight and features. The female will really fool you unless you look for the spotty or strips on her feathers.
Bam! instant House Finch house. They will take to it like ducks to water. They prefer to be on there own (Finches for company that is) and as Steve said love the hanging baskets. I have three around my front part of my house and all three have had Finches in them each year. They have one of the prettiest song bird songs and are quite interesting to watch them feed there babies right out side the window.
They will occasions land on my PM perches and I initially I thought they were sparrows. I get out the 12X scope and see that they are not. Now I can tell by there flight and features. The female will really fool you unless you look for the spotty or strips on her feathers.
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Guest
FANTASTIC INFO!! I will definitely hang some baskets on our deck for the finches 'cuz I love seeing and hearing them. Thank you!
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Glen Webb Jr
- Posts: 478
- Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2004 1:03 pm
- Location: Illinois/Stewardson
I agree with Steve Kroenke. House finches are definitely no match for established martins. I don't know of anything a house finch can bully. When I first started attracting martins at the age of 16, house finches were a common 'problem' for me. I always dispatched them through harassment and they never got to the nest building stage. Now that I live in "Prairie Land" and I use only gourds, and have a well established colony, finches are not a problem. In fact house finches are not that common where I live now, mainly due to the open site of the surrounding countryside. However, there are about 3 pair now that have been hanging around home and the evergreens, and one pair has been nosing around the gourds, but I if they do decide to nest in a gourd, I'll leave them. I love house finches and my returning adults have already shown the finches who the rightful tenants of the gourds are.
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Sigundo
We put out a hanging basket using plastic "spider plants", my wife put about 3 of them around the outside of the hanging basket, with real dirt over the styrofoam, leaving the center empty. We have robins that usually build there, but this time didn't want to worry about watering so replaced live with plastic.
Well, house finches moved in and had a complete nest (best as I could tell) in ONE day.. I had thought they were sparrows at first, as I only caught a glance of the female shooting out of the basket, but when I looked, the pair of house finches landed a few feet away and read me the riot act... well, I took off and they are happily moved in now. I do miss the robins, but house finches are just fine by me, I've never seen a house finch bother ANYTHING, and they can sing pretty. Course they can also make a horrible noise if you're bothering their new nesting site too.
Still no PM's here, but mine are always very late compared to everybody elses, so I'm not at the panic point yet.
Well, house finches moved in and had a complete nest (best as I could tell) in ONE day.. I had thought they were sparrows at first, as I only caught a glance of the female shooting out of the basket, but when I looked, the pair of house finches landed a few feet away and read me the riot act... well, I took off and they are happily moved in now. I do miss the robins, but house finches are just fine by me, I've never seen a house finch bother ANYTHING, and they can sing pretty. Course they can also make a horrible noise if you're bothering their new nesting site too.
Still no PM's here, but mine are always very late compared to everybody elses, so I'm not at the panic point yet.