WILL DRONES SCARE PURPLE MARTINS

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ky395
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Feb 10, 2004 7:44 am
Location: Waddy, KY

thinking of getting one to watch my birds - any experience with this will be helpful
Thanks
Bill -Waddy, KY
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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 have heard that drones greatly scare martins, have not seen any drones around here yet so cannot verify that
PMCA Member, 250 gourds, 6 poles, 2traps
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SMJohnson
Posts: 150
Joined: Wed Feb 19, 2014 11:06 am
Location: IA/Ottumwa

My experience is that a drone will disturb Martins. Friend thought it might be fun to film the colony from an altitude.They were very stressed by the experience.
Didn't like it one bit. Viewed it as an intruder, like it were a predator.
2012-13 pair..........2019-102 pair
2013-52 pair..........2020-109 pair
2014-65 pair..........2021-144 pair
2015-85 pair..........2022-156 pair
2016-80 pair..........2023-174 pair
2017-93 pair..........2024- 193 pair
2018- 87 pair..........2025- ? pair

2021 Offering 180 Nesting Cavities
64 Troyer Horizontal Gourds
64 Troyer Vertical Gourds
2 T14'S - 28 Compartments
3 SMJ8'S - 24 Compartments
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marcus
Posts: 314
Joined: Tue May 10, 2016 10:21 pm
Location: Fairland OK
Martin Colony History: Mom n Dad had a plastic 12 unit martin house with some martins as long as I can remember. In 2013 they had 1 pair. I don't think they fledged any. I then started learning how to take care of martins and in 2014 we took that house down and put up a Troyer 18 gourd rack. We had 7 pair with 28 fledged.That summer I built a T-14 (I was only 12). I was also given 4 natural gourds that I hung beneath the T-14. In 2015, we had 23 pair although only 22 pair fledged young. They fledged 88 young. In 2016, we had 36 pair, 210 eggs, 163 hatched, 149 fledge!! One pair fledged 2 broods. In 2017, I had 36 pair with 35 fledging young. They laid 204 eggs, hatched 155, and fledged 152.

Larry Melcher has done it and posted a video of it on the PMCA's youtube channel.
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~Ray~Gingerich
Posts: 2122
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2004 10:24 pm
Location: Delaware/Dover

Crop dusters will upset martins that's for sure, had a martin killed by a crop duster.
~Ray~ Gingerich
1999 1pair, 2006 2 pair, 2008 2 pair,
2009 23 pair, 2010 39 pair, 2011 67 pair,
2012 115 pair, 2013 160 pair,
2014 152 pair, 2015 174 pair, 2016 178 pair
2017 187 pair, 2018 200 pair, 2019 171pair
2020 233 pair
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Hanover Bill
Posts: 656
Joined: Thu May 14, 2009 3:10 pm
Location: Pennsylvania/Hanover Township
Martin Colony History: 2009 & 10 - 0
2011 & 12 - Visitors
2013 - 2 pr. fledged 9
2014 - 3 pr. fledged 13
2015 - 7 pr. fledged 27
2016 - 15 pr. fledged 72

Hi Bill;

My experience is not with a drone, but with a battery operated, remote control plane. My neighbor's son flies one over my field when he is home visiting. What we found is that the Martins are attracted to it, they don't really seem to be afraid of it, more curious than anything, they fly right up to it to check it out, which brought about concerns that they could be injured by the prop which obviously spins at a very high rate.

So our solution was to declare the field a "no fly zone" during Martin season, which has taken the anxiety of a possible "mid-air collision" off the board.

Hanover Bill.
2009 & 10 - 0
2011 & 12 - Visitors
2013 - 2 pr. fledged 9
2014 - 3 pr. fledged 13
2015 - 7 pr. fledged 27
2016 - 15 pr. fledged 72
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