I have read many times from other landlords about SY males disrupting bonded pairs but I have never had the problem until this year.
I had a ASY pair in a S&K Double Gourd (new version). She laid 6 eggs and all was well! In comes a late arriving SY male and he occupies a single gourd on the same rack arm as the nesting pair.
Next thing I see is the SY perching on the porch of the gourd with the pair. He moves from his gourd to theirs back and forth. He does not move off and is blocking the pair from entering the gourd. I checked my records and saw that hatching should have started. I lowered the rack and checked. There was 4 1 day old babies, no other eggs. Of the babies, 3 had been moved to the front compartment of the gourd, the other was in the back. The 3 were cold but alive, the other was begging for food. I put the 3 back and closed up the gourd.
I watched for several hours and the SY male would not allow them to feed.
As of yesterday all the hatchlings were gone and he is now the owner of the gourd along with either the same female or a new one.
This just sucks. I wonder what happened to the ASY male. Poor little ones.
Peggy
Purple Martin Forum
The internet's gathering place for Purple Martin enthusiasts!