New York Newbie

[Guest]

Hello Everyone,

I live in Southwestern New York, about 90 miles east of Erie. I put a T14 up last June and just opened it up this year and added a few gourds this year. My question is this. When looking at the migration maps, I see nothing for this area. It seems like the Alleghany Mountain region in Northern PA and New York is a little bit empty when it comes to the migration of the PM. Is this because there are no landlords in this area or is it because we are a bit colder than are neighbors to the west in Erie? I see old martin house around here but they look like they were never cared for and sparrows and starlings have lived in them for years. None of them were the type that would raise and lower so I doubt they were owned by good landlords. I am not sure if I have even seen a PM in the area. I have TRES in some of my EABL Houses and see barn swallows buzzing the fields, but I doubt I have seen a martin.

Is there anyone in this area who has had success? I would love to hear from you if so. I have a river about 500 ft. from the house and two large ponds about an 1/8 of a mile in the other direction. The house sits in an acre yard and they have open space on all 4 sides.

Any encouragement will be helpfull :o)



Thanks,
Michael

[Mary Dawnsong]

Hi Michael,

Welcome to the forum!

I surely hope you hear from local landlords. On the Scout Report page, try checking the maps from prior years for reports from your area - they are available through 1998. The PMCA Martin Mentor program might also provide some contacts from nearby NY or PA landlords: http://purplemartin.org/mentorprogram/

I hope the following info is at least slightly encouraging...

The North American Breeding Bird Survey is an annual bird count. This map is compiled from that data and shows the distribution of Purple Martins during their breeding season. Note that there is a large area in NY and PA where martins are never counted. However, it sounds like you are a bit west of that void. Click on:
http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/htm03/ ... a06110.htm

So the good news is that martins have been seen in your area. The bad news is that they are not very abundant and starting a colony is likely to be a challenge. For more on that topic, see:
http://purplemartin.org/forumarchives/a ... oColon.htm
http://purple-martin.org/WhyNestAlone.htm

In an area of low abundance, social attraction is a powerful tool for attracting Purple Martins to a site they might otherwise never visit. The most important social attractant is playing the Purple Martin Dawnsong recording so that martins can "hear" your site. This is much better advertisement than simply erecting a martin house - if you never see martins then you can't expect them to see you. Click the Archives button under the forum banner and scroll down to the Attraction Techniques section. Read the articles on the Dawnsong recording specifically - and all the other articles, too. This article is a good summary of advanced attraction techniques:
http://purplemartin.org/forumarchives/a ... ggesti.htm

Good luck, Mary