I have recently moved in to a rental that had purple martins last year and has had for years. This my first time as a landlord and have been doing a lot of reading. Would like them to stay(not the sparrows) I had the holes taped up and opened them yeserday evening after viewing scout sitings near my area. THE SPARROWS WERE BACK THIS MORNING!!!!!!! What should I do?
I would open up the house (is it the same one that was there last year?) and start a sparrow control program assuming that your house has openings that starlings cannot enter. Read SREH.
Don't stress out about getting everything just perfect at first. It takes a few years to process all the info that is available and to become a good landlord. You are doing great by reading and asking questions. It is definitely not too late to retain the colony at your site. It is quite of bit of work to do it well, but it is very rewarding.
Provide as much info as you can to this forum and you will get lots of help from all the people here. You will have some personal decisions to make about your sparrow and starling control program.
Questions:
type and size of openings
ability to raise/lower house and open compartments for inspection
internal dimensions of compartments
location/distance of nearest trees
location/distance of nearest buildings
height of housing above ground
A close up picture of housing and a picture encompassing whole site will answer many critical questions.
Guss P O'Brien wrote:I would open up the house (is it the same one that was there last year?) and start a sparrow control program assuming that your house has openings that starlings cannot enter. Read SREH.
Don't stress out about getting everything just perfect at first. It takes a few years to process all the info that is available and to become a good landlord. You are doing great by reading and asking questions. It is definitely not too late to retain the colony at your site. It is quite of bit of work to do it well, but it is very rewarding.
Provide as much info as you can to this forum and you will get lots of help from all the people here. You will have some personal decisions to make about your sparrow and starling control program.
Questions:
type and size of openings
ability to raise/lower house and open compartments for inspection
internal dimensions of compartments
location/distance of nearest trees
location/distance of nearest buildings
height of housing above ground
A close up picture of housing and a picture encompassing whole site will answer many critical questions.
Good luck.
Thanks for the input. The house has been there for years and have had tenants for many years. I have never been a landlord and of courrse would like to keep them.
If the sparrows do build today, do I just make them vacate the premises?
There has been recent scout sitings from what I see on the sitings list. Approx 60 miles away. Does that mean they will be in my area soon?
I'm the duct tape king, but never use any tape on martin houses. The residue can get on their feathers. You may want to check for "sticky" spots and clean it with alcohol. To temporarily close compartments, some folks stuff pieces of foam "pool noodle" into the holes. Clothes pins work too.
Only way to get rid of sparrows is trapping or shooting. They rebuild all season, and tearing out their nests just makes the male meaner. Be careful of "house sparrow" revenge when the martins have active nests. The male's response to nest cleanout then is to break martin eggs and throw out their young nestlings, but he may do this occassionally even without being provoked.
thanks for the duct tape advice. I had used duct tape but will be sure to clean off the residue. Seemed like a good idea at the time! Clothespins sounds better!
