Purple Martin

These lovely swallows always arrive here in the last week of February.

The purple martin is a beautiful native member of the swallow family. East of the Mississippi river, it is almost entirely dependent on human-supplied housing to breed. It winters in Brazil and the surrounding area and migrates back to the US and Canada in the spring to breed. It competes with non-native English house sparrows and European starlings for nest sites, and these pests have had a detrimental effect on their populations in some areas, and those birds should be discouraged from using martin houses and gourds. When possible, use SREH (starling-resistant entrance hole) housing. Martins need open areas free of trees, and their housing should be put up 12-15 feet on a sturdy pole with a predator guard in place. Martins exhibit sexual dimorphism when mature (2+ years old), and experie... read morenced spotters can identify males and females in subadult populations as well. Mature males (ASY) are dark purple all over, while females have a gray underside. Males exhibit the rich gutteral song as well.