Purple Martin, maleSomeone recently asked us about Purple Martins in NH. Here, they are very rare, only occurring in a few places. In Florida, where the above photo was taken, they are common and much easier to attract if you put up the right housing in the right habitat.
Amazingly, while we are sitting here in NH with record snow accumulation and frigid (2 degrees) temps., some Purple Martins have already migrated back to the U.S. and been spotted in several locations such as Punta Gorda and Naples, FL. The Purple Martin Conservation Association website has a cool page where you can report your Purple Martin's arrival dates and view other's reports so you will know when Purple Martins are arriving in different areas of the country, click here.
In general Purple Martins arrive in Fl by Jan., the middle of the country by March 15th, and the northen part of the country by early May. See this map from our Stokes Purple Martin book.
Purple Martins can be attracted with the right housing and know-how, if you live in an area of the country where they are found. So even if you are buried in snow, think about spring, Purple Martins and putting up housing for them by the time they arrive.
3 comments:
I have your Purple Martin book. It has been the BEST resource for me in trying to attract purple martins to my yard. I've had them nest and lay eggs, but the nests have never been successful (after 3 years and new subadult nesting pairs each year). Every spring I look forward to a new nesting season and hopefully success in finally getting my colony established here in SE Minnesota.
Love your book on Purple Martins, I actually sell it on my website, PurpleMartins-R-Us.com
I fledged 131 this year.
Thank you for opening up birding to so many.
Its so nice to find other people with similar interests.My wife and i put up our first condo here in Alberta,Canada this past spring and although we had many sub adults stop by for a visit,we had no takers so we are keeping our fingers crossed for this spring.It was so nice to have the visiters,but would be so much more exciting to have full time tenants
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