Da_Gut
Stockton Sustainability FarmPurple Martin gourds are up and ready for our seasonal visitors.
Don Ray#Birds #BackyardBirds #PurpleMartins #Iowa #Fedipajareo
It was time to put up the Purple Martin nesting gourds, but I’m glad I waited until after the weekend’s wild weather.
Matt HuckePurple martins, the largest swallow in North America. Marymoor Park, Redmond WA.
Richard Rathe#PurpleMartins hunker down on a cold, rainy day.
@Captain_Jack_Sparrow @greatbasinbirds
Sorry to hear that. Barn Swallows aren't threatened here in #NorthAmerica , but most wild passerines are in decline. 😢
I found the link from the page you sent interesting "swifts vs swallows vs martins"... You have two martin species. But they appear to nest like other hanging mud nest swallows.
Over the pond we have #PurpleMartins that nest in cavities and are very social. If you click on the "Listen" link on this page you'll hear a good recording. It is one of the happiest sounds I know. 💕
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Purple_Martin
I love this little anecdote from the same site...
"Putting up martin houses used to be so common that John James Audubon used them to choose his lodgings for the night. In 1831, he remarked, 'Almost every country tavern has a martin box on the upper part of its sign-board; and I have observed that the handsomer the box, the better does the inn generally prove to be.'"
Purple Martin Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Putting up a Purple Martin house is like installing a miniature neighborhood in your backyard. In the East, dark, glossy-blue males and brown females will peer from the entrances and chirp from the rooftops all summer. In the West, martins mainly still nest the old-fashioned way—in woodpecker holes. Our largest swallows, Purple Martins perform aerial acrobatics to snap up flying insects. At the end of the breeding season they gather in big flocks and make their way to South America.
Nelson@acm_redfox Huh, do purple martins nest in Philly? I've never seen one, but I'm pretty new to birding and I don't know what they look like.
Although many articles online mention purple martins as mosquito predators, Wikipedia says "They usually fly relatively high, so, contrary to popular opinion, mosquitoes do not form a large part of their diet." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_martin
Sadly the source cited is paywalled, so I don't have more details.
PhoenixSerenityI love these #birds 😍 A whole bunch of them returned last week, to nest at the docks at paddling club. I enjoyed viewing them, before boarding dragonboat for our weekly team practice.
https://youtube.com/shorts/asID0suEwNw?si=rp7LGjQXQNJ2BhG5
#PurpleMartins #Birdwatching #VictoriaBC #VancouverIsland #nature #wildlife #Wsanec #Lekwungen #VanIsle #PacificNorthwest #PNW #springtime
Richard RatheHome Invasion
I had to clean out and reset my #MartinHouse last spring because the #Grackles had taken over. It was odd because they didn't really make nests, just a few bits of detritus each time. It was more like they were just claiming the real estate so the #PurpleMartins couldn't use it! I finally got the bad birds to leave by spraying the house with a hose. The Martins moved in almost immediately. Love 'em! 💕
A Nearly Full House of Purple Martins from Earlier This Year
I LOVE these birds!
