This is my 12th year of hosting Purple Martins here in North Dakota and they still continue to amaze me. Each season has been so very different, and enjoyably familiar, to the others at the same time.

I've seen little evidence of nest building this season. I've seen a few half-hearted attempts of bringing twigs and straw into the gourds and witnessed several violent fights with the aggressive sub-adults.

I decided to check the gourds yesterday evening in case any of the subbie battles caused an injury. I peeked into several gourds seeing nothing but the well-packed pre-nests I make to start each season. A couple pairs had an added twig or a few leaves. I could see indentions where birds were sleeping.

Then I opened Gourd 4 and saw five eggs! From the faintest of pink coloring and the visible air sac at the rounded end of one of the eggs I know the hen is already incubating them! I also found five more eggs in Gourd 8. For the crowning jewel there was one perfect pearly egg in Gourd 12.

None of these nests had additional nesting material beyond a very few twigs and two or three green leaves. No mud dams, just nest bowls spun into the packed cedar shavings and lovely eggs. Last year the nests were fortified barricades with two-inch high mud dams and straw and twigs tightly packed in.

So my guys have surprised me again. Eleven eggs in three gourds with green leaves in most of the other gourds. All this right under my nose without me noticing - and I pride myself on being observant. HA! "Pride goeth before the fall."