107 house sparrows

[birdgardener]

This is my third year hosting purple martins. They all (8 Troyer vertical gourds) seemed to lay eggs at the same time this year. I had 37 fledged by July 20. They all fledged within a week. We have had unusally hot and humid weather (14 days of 90 and over in a row), so I was glad to see them fledge early as we are in another hot spell this past week. With the vented covers they seemed to take the heat okay. Last year the last ones fledged on August 7. From mid-April until mid-July I trapped and disposed of 107 house sparrows. Roving bands of house sparrows kept coming in from surrounding neighborhoods. I didn't think it would end, but I haven't seen any house sparrows around for the last week. An occasional group of martins come back for a short visit, otherwise it is quiet for now. Thankful for another successful season
Dan Kahl
Buffalo, MN

[Dave Reynolds]

... Sounds like a great year for ya... The hot weather was brutal, but the birds did make it through. I had a few early jumpers in late June, but put them back in the nest, and all worked out. Hoping you success in the coming year. All of mine have fledged except one nest. And I look for them to be out in another 7 days.. Enjoy and welcome to the Forum..

Dave

[flyin-lowe]

What kind of trap are you using? The good news is sparrows have a relatively small home range so you can make a dent in the local population. My first colony was up against a farm field and there were cattle barns less then 50 yards away. So constant feed, straw, water, etc. The fist couple of years I killed over 100 of them. After that the numbers dropped and after 5-7 years I was getting less then 20 a year. You just have to stick with it. I bought a new air rifle a couple years ago that changed the game for me. I put out traps until the martins start to arrive and then rely on shooting the rest of the year. A couple years ago I put a feeder out over the winter and I got a lot more that year.