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I bought my house. Now, where should I put it to have the best chance of getting martins?This one's hard to answer without actually being there and seeing the setup, so here are a few quick tips on locating any purple martin housing: Martins like wide open spaces, so with that in mind, the house should be placed in a very open area, but within site of your own home.. Martins hate tall trees. The house should be no closer than 40" feet of any tall trees, furthe...
I would like to start a Purple Martin colony. Is there anything special I should know?Yes, I'm afraid there is. Keeping purple martins can be a very gratifying and enjoyable hobby, but it's a lot more complicated than just putting a house on top of a pole and letting them come. Sometimes, if certain rules aren't followed, martins may never come and the house is then taken over by either English House Sparrows or European Starlings, the martins worst nesting...
Why is so much literature being written about enlarging the compartment sizes of houses?A lot of study has gone into this subject and it's now a proven fact that martins prefer the larger cavities, say 6" x 6" x 12". A long time ago, some aluminum house manufacturers decided that the size of a martins' nest should be 6" x 6" square. How they derived at this number isn't exactly known because the parent birds are around 8" long, but it probably had something t...
We want to move our martin housing to the other side of our house. Will this be a problem?Maybe, maybe not. Martins, as well as all other birds, have very good homing instincts and as far as they are concerned, that exact spot is their home. If you move it very far, then they may abandon it. I know because I tried to do this many years ago when I moved my T-14 and the martins didn't come back the following year. In fact, they would fly to the exact same spot an...
We have a dog that is penned in our back yard. Will he bother the martins?Normally, martins will pay no attention to dogs around their site, even if they are noisy. In fact, they soon find them as a deterrent to predators and accept them as part of their site. However; if your dog jumps at the pole, hitting and bumping it in an attempt to try and get at them, then the martins will definitely have a problem with that. If necessary to prevent this...
What type of landscape attracts purple martins?Purple martins won't accept housing enclosed or obstructed by trees and the best location is at least 40 to 60 feet away from trees of equal height. Apartment houses should be situated 10 to 15 feet above the ground in open airspace, at least 30 feet from your own dwelling. Some species of swallows are quite partial to martin housing, as are house sparrows. Adult birds hav...
What can I put up for collateral?Real estate may be put up based on equity. For example, a house on which you pay a mortgage is considered good collateral up to the difference between it's value and the amount you still owe on the mortgage. Note that except for a house, items which you have bought on credit and are making payments are not usually collateral unless you hold the title (a.k.a. pink slip). Fo...
I've read that martins like eggshells. Will this help attract them?No, not really. Yes, it's true that martins like eggshells, but this is usually only during nesting and brooding periods. The females use them for grit and a source of calcium which they need to make their own eggshells stronger. They also feed the to the young for the grit and calcium. Putting eggshells out before martins arrive will only attract all the other birds in yo...
Are there Purple Martins where I live?Purple martins' territory occupies much of the U.S. east of the Rocky Mountains, extending north into the southern parts of Canada. These birds are completely dependent upon humans to supply good Purple Martin Birdhouses. There are purple martins that live in parts of the western U.S. and along the Pacific coasts, but they generally nest in natural cavities, or occasionall...
What do I do with the birdhouses and feeders in the winter, when the birds have flown south?Take the purple martin birdhouses into the basement or garage, or simply block the holes until the martins return. Leaving the holes blocked until you see purple martins perching on the house is a good routine, as it decreases the risk of competing birds preemptively nesting in it. (See the Purple Martin Info page for more.) Many other birdhouses are suitable for use as wi...
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