Help Purple Martins

Michigan Audubon Society's Purple Martin Project

Help Purple Martins Now

Early preparation is key to establishing a successful martin colony

by Dick Schinkel

Michigan Audubon Society (MAS) adopted the Purple Martin as a species of concern in the hopes of increasing the martin population through public education. Over the last year, I have attended a few of Richard Wolinski's seminars on attracting Purple Martins in order to assist with the MAS "Purple Martin Project."

In his book, Enjoying Purple Martins More, Wolinski includes a section outlining ten common mistakes made by martin house landlords. One of these is not dealing with nest competitors. Two of the most abundant bird competitors are the House Sparrow and the European Starling. Protecting the colony from these birds during the beginning of the nesting season is quite important. Once the martins are established, they will usually be able to defend the nest cavity with success.

Wolinski suggests going one step further by focusing on eliminating these bird competitors during the winter. He encourages landlords to take martin houses out of service if they are are not being used by martins during the nesting season. He maintains correctly that unused martin houses are only producing more sparrows and starlings during the summer.

If you know of someone who would benefit from a Purple Martin house, it might make sense to relocate one of these unsuccessful houses. This accomplishes at least three things: (1.) It takes the house out of sparrow and starling production; (2.) It provides a home for a possible new Purple Martin colony; and (3.) It may be a free or inexpensive way to obtain a martin house that would not otherwise be available (new Purple Martin houses can be expensive).

A project for Audubon chapters during winter might be to identify martin houses in your area and see if the landowner has had any success. If not, the owner might be persuaded to allow the chapter to remove the house, at little or no cost, refurbish it, and relocate it to a suitable site for attracting martins. I can't think of a more rewarding way to spend the winter than by eliminating the pesky House Sparrows and starlings. A second reward is knowing you have helped other cavity nesting birds by keeping these populations down. You might even help a local scout group or junior Audubon chapter adopt this project.

Another project this winter is to ready yourself for the coming nesting season by learning what is needed for a successful Purple Martin colony. This can be done by purchasing Richard Wolinski's book from the MAS Bookshop. You can obtain it for only $4.50 (including tax & postage). Another popular guide is Donald and Lillian Stokes' The Purple Martin Book, available from MAS for $14.67 (including tax & postage). Your chapter might wish to invest in these books and share them with your membership.

An effective way to deter House Sparrows at an active Purple Martin colony is to place gourds out as a nest cavity. Sparrows don't like the swinging of the gourds, but martins love them. I will be selling poles and plastic gourds, approved and recommended by the Purple Martin Conservation Association, during the winter and nesting season and, during an early spring promotion, shipping them directly to you or your chapter.

Let's help the Purple Martins now. We can make a difference!