Purple Martin Association of the Dakotas

I currently have about 15 ASY pairs and 10 ASYM extras at my site. Last year total breeding birds were 118, so a long way to go yet. Several new arrival birds in the last week made their first stop at the feeder and gorged themselves before checking out the housing. Cooper's, Sharpshined and Merlins have been harassing the colony regularly. Every day a few more ASY PM's show up and some move on north.

Hopefully when SY's arrive many of last years young will disperse to sites of hopeful landlords in the area.

Al

Al

Like your thought on the S.Y.'s, There's a group just north of you waiting.

From what I'v read, your situation on the Regulars is par, all the way to the Gulf.
A.S.Y's are slowly returning, but S.Y.'s in fair numbers are already filling-in at some sites.

AS Caroline mentioned, her first returnee was an S.Y.-F, little unusual

Hope the numbers for 2015 meet your expectations.

Any new sites, in the Crookston area?

Think Purple
Jerome

I am at about 50% of birds compared to last years total. I am not aware of any new sites around town. Most local housing is S&S infested or falling apart.

Al

Sometimes it seems the temp. average/forage ratio, equals P.M. numbers!?
Anyway the weather fronts have caused them to do the "Swooping Two-step" all
the way up, again this spring!

Don't mean to sidetrack your post, but I have to ask=

Your thoughts on how we could generate some interest for area folks to start-new or
upgrade those (run down sites) to quality, manageable housing.
Evan if it is only a pair of Bungalow's or quality gourds to start a colony.
It would seem that more "Sites" in our areas should enhance propagation, thru
retaining and exchange of S.Y. birds!

Jerome

Jerome,

I am not an activist by any definition of the word. I have found over the years that successful endeavors are accomplished best by people that are self motivated for whatever their reason. Others will get excited and start projects but eventually lose interest and fade away. This is evident by all the run down and eventually abandoned colonies. I have been an enthusiast since I was about 12 years old, probably before that.

Starting and maintaining a colony is real work. In this area S&S are a real problem and if you don't stay on top of eliminating them from your site you will eventually lose and give up the battle. Annually I trap about 300 sparrows and 8 starlings. I use all SREH housing. When I first came here in 1974 there were the remains of some larger colonies in town and at the lakes around Mentor/Erskine areas. The Eickhof's had a couple of large houses on the east edge of town and on their Union Lake property. They are now gone. Eickhof's also had/have houses by condos they built years ago east of my location. They are now overgrown by trees and abandoned. There were many houses on the shores of Maple and Union lakes. Over the years trees over shadowed them and sparrows took over along with starlings, most are gone now or not managed.

There is a Martin house across from the fire station in a little park. It has around 144 compartments and is about 10 years old. I have only seen 1 PM even looking at it.

You can talk people into starting a project but following through into the future is difficult at best. Lack of interest by the general public is the real problem.

Most people are content to have the nuisance imports around for company. This is shown by all the housing they put up and how well fed they are.

It will take a values change to turn this decline around. The Amish as a group seem to care about the PM's and other good birds. Some day I need to tour their new settlement area around Winger/McIntosh for PM housing. That could be a big help for our PM's.

Sorry for being so negative but this is my assessment.

I will probably have some of my birds banded this year by a researcher from Bemidji as a part of her thesis. She is doing Geo locator and GPS work near Bemidji and wants to band birds at this site. I have never observed a tagged bird at this site. It could give us a clue to where young disperse to from here. Lots of adult birds stop over and fuel up before heading north. They could be PM's that knew this site as young of previous years. I suspect they are going to Winnipeg and north.

Will let all know when SY's appear in numbers so you can flag them down to your sites.

Al

Al

I know this is WAY late, but maybe it's never too late, for this endeavor?

I learned about "constant improvement" at a fairly young age, so that may
be what pushes me to do/say what I do.

I'm at an age along with some of my clients/friends, where interests have changed from
hunting/punching a clock, to just enjoying nature, thru feeding/hosting birds.

Since Mr. Perry peaked my interest at a P.M. presentation, spring 2013, I been studying and
sharing the ins n outs of pursuing this Hobby. been asked and helped raise P.M housing at four
sites, including 3- T-8 s and a 4 gourd rack, all /w SRE & pole guards, in the most open spot on
each site. Am presently upgrading 12 comp. TREO CASTLE style house to SRE, /w winch & guard.

Mr. Owner of the Trio house has passed and Mrs. Owner my not know a P.M. from a Starling!
But I offered to return the house and to help monitor, to see if P.M appear in spring.

So it boils down to - am monitoring 4 satellite sites, of which 3 have had visitors and
only 1 may have nesters and have yet to experience nesting P.M. at my site!

Luck, may be a factor in forming a persons perspective about this endeavor!?

I think your comments are more Honest than negative and I thank you for all the good info and sharing
your experiences, today's values have curbed interests of the public general!

Be fun to here if the Amish Folks are hosting P.M.

I find myself visiting colony's, L.L., hopefuls and others about P.M. and other nesting birds on reg. basis.
I enjoy interacting and sharing the anticipation, along with stories about propagation of various species.

Jerome

Jerome,

I am not negative but hopeful that other P.M. lovers have the dedication to keep their housing maintained even if no birds show up for some years. Before my current colony got started again after abandonment / disease it took 6 years to restart it. After the first year's success and a old colony being taken down about 6 blocks away (the only viable one I knew of in town), mine grew rapidly over the next 6 years and has now leveled out. We have had at least 2 bad years early in the season and that may be why growth has stopped. I hope it resumes it's growth with a good year.

The research being conducted by BSU may help answer a few questions for our locale. According to the researchers I have the largest colony by far that they are aware of in NW Minnesota. My gut has always told me a lot of the young birds that survive at my colony are going further NW from my site (Winnipeg?). Quite a few birds stop here early in spring and continue somewhere else after up to 2 weeks fattening up at my site because they know how to use the feeders and enter SREH with ease.

Maybe next year is your chance to get started. I will continue to host this colony as long as I am physically able. I have been at it since before I was 12 and living in M'pls.

Al

Good to hear you are overcoming some of the trials of hosting these special swallows!

Stable weather, as you mention, for our short production season is paramount!

Research results on the "20" of returning S.Y. birds will be most interesting.

Nest of luck as we move ahead into the next season!

Hope our new members "swoop in" with thoughts on starting or hosting a colony of these swallows

Jerome