Pretty good article about a group in New Jersey trying to start a colony in New Jersey
http://www.bergen.com/page.php?qstr=eXJ ... VlRUV5eTM=
MARTINS IN THE NEWS -
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Emil Pampell-Tx
- Posts: 6743
- Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 1:26 pm
- Location: Tx, Richmond (SW of Houston)
- Martin Colony History: First started in Gretna, La in 1969 with a small homemade house, have had martins ever since at 2 different homes in Texas
I don't know about the purple martins not allowing the SY martins from their old colony back because it causes inbreeding. I never heard of that before. I don't think they can even recognize them! I wonder which martins would be responsible for the ID check?????
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Joe Zorn
Who knows? Maybe they can tell who their kids are. You know how purple martins are. They all look alike to me! 
But we have known for a while that the babies don't come back to the site they where they were born for some reason.
Anyway, the author did a good job with that article.
But we have known for a while that the babies don't come back to the site they where they were born for some reason.
Anyway, the author did a good job with that article.
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Emil Pampell-Tx
- Posts: 6743
- Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 1:26 pm
- Location: Tx, Richmond (SW of Houston)
- Martin Colony History: First started in Gretna, La in 1969 with a small homemade house, have had martins ever since at 2 different homes in Texas
Joe, I thought that a low percentage do return to their colony. Where did you hear that the babies don't return? This is new to me and I would like to know the source of your info
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Guest
Joe, I do not speak from my experience here, but from the experience of Ron Seekamp who was PMCA landlord of the year in 1999. Ron has been a landlord for close to 40 years now.
I talk with Ron often and he has found dead ASY martins at his site over the years that were banded as babied at his location.
I think it was last year he found one during a cold weather spell we had in Minnesota that was 4 or 5 if I remember correctly.
So we do have proof that this does happen.
I talk with Ron often and he has found dead ASY martins at his site over the years that were banded as babied at his location.
I think it was last year he found one during a cold weather spell we had in Minnesota that was 4 or 5 if I remember correctly.
So we do have proof that this does happen.
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Joe Zorn
Good Morning, Guys.
I sure stand corrected. No source, Emil. I just always understood that the younguns did not return to their birth site. A fact that always sort of saddened me.
That is good news this morning for a change.
I sure stand corrected. No source, Emil. I just always understood that the younguns did not return to their birth site. A fact that always sort of saddened me.
That is good news this morning for a change.
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Joe Zorn
Emil,
So the article was not totally wrong to mention the part about inbreeding, whether the article is right or those with prior experience speak for the more common happening. Sounds like a goodly %age do come back home.
Well, I knew I had seen this info somewhere. I will quote the text in question, and then post the website of the article.Joe, I thought that a low percentage do return to their colony. Where did you hear that the babies don't return? This is new to me and I would like to know the source of your info
http://home.earthlink.net/~chuckabare/overview.htmWhen fledglings leave the nest to fly south for the winter, on their return, they do not usually return to the site where they were born. Having never nested before, they do not yet have the 'site fidelity' that the older birds have and will look for a site to nest where ever they can. It's these birds that will be returning as SY's. Usually, only about 15% to 20% will return to their natal site. Instead, these SY birds will usually look for a new site to set up housekeeping. This is nature's way of preventing inbreeding. Banding studies have shown that SY birds have been spotted as far as 200 miles away from their natal site.
So the article was not totally wrong to mention the part about inbreeding, whether the article is right or those with prior experience speak for the more common happening. Sounds like a goodly %age do come back home.