Terrene, The ancient martins of the past once nested in hollow tree snags,old woodpecker holes,etc and some including myself think they mave have used rocky outcroppings,cliffsides,and river banks very similar to how the Rough Winged Swallow,Barn,and the Cliff Swallow nests today. To me this would explain their use of mud in their nests. There would be no need for mud in a deep woodpecker cavity or tree hollow but maybe the ancient martins used mud to seal off a rock crevice or something similar?? All fun questions to think about and wonder. The native American Indians of the south first started attracting martins by using gourds. Most likely it happened by accident as the Indians hung the gourds to dry. Well maybe the mice(that love to eat gourd seeds)got into them as they hung there in the winter drying. They ate a hole in the gourd and in the spring the martins took them. After the Indians noticed this they liked the martins and then started purposely hanging the gourds for them? Again fun questions to think about. When the white man settled in this country they began to build wooden houses for martins along with adopting the Indians practice of hanging gourds and then the stage was set for making the Purple Martin so dependant on man for housing as they are today. I think that in ancient days of this country when the great forests once dominated that the martins were not as common as they are today with the increased open area and that is most likely true. However the greatest threat to martins now is their need for man made housing and of course their number one enemies the Starlings and the House Sparrows. When these two birds came on the scene they slowly began to push out the martins wherever they became common. Gone were the days of simply putting up a martin house with 2 inch round holes in it and forgetting about it. Same with the Bluebirds and if it were not for the 1 and 1\2 inch entrance hole in BB Boxes the Eastern Bluebird would not be near as common as they are now. The 1 and 1\2 hole stopped the starlings and then they only had the House Sparrows to deal with. Fortunately for the Purple Martin there are now SREH(Starling Resistent Entrance Holes)and they have helped martins everywhere now not have to deal with starlings and wherever this is happening the martins are doing great. My site is nearly 100% clinger SREH now and it is such a sitisfying feeling knowing the martins are protected from those nest stealing,murdering starlings. Martins can deal with the sparrows to a point but not starlings and having the SREH is the only way to go these days if you seek a martin colony. I have been a martin landlord since I was 11 years old Terrene and all. I never tire of watching them and they are such a great part of summertime in this country. They are as American as baseball,apple pie,your Grandma's country biscuits,etc..smile..Thanks to all people who now use the SREH and trap and control the House Sparrows at their martin colonies. It simply helps the martins bigtime and so many other native songbirds continue to exist and live free and un harrassed in their own country. Man has in a way changed the nesting habits of the martins and this one question is always in my mind when I watch them. What would happen if all of a sudden man stopped supplying them housing?? Would their ancient instincts kick back in and send them back to cliffs,riverbanks,hollows,etc??? That is a lot to ponder right there I know that...Mike

Glenda...it's my therapy! I love all the native birds, and the cavity nesters (Purple Martins, Tree Swallows, Woodpeckers, Bluebirds, Chickadees, Nuthatches, etc.) most especially. The PMs eat only flying insects. They have beautiful songs and calls. They are always on the wing. They are so sweet and gentle and nest only near humans. They have "imprinted" on humans since before the time of Columbus. He discovered native American villages up and down the eastern coast with long poles hung with gourds around the areas. Insect control, beautiful birds and beautiful song. Socks...Yes, I'm registered with the Purple Martin Conservation Association. They track "landlords" submitted information on arrivals, dates, eggs, fledges, departures, etc., and the migration back to Brazil. They actually use doppler radar to check the early and late migrations, too. For a native bird that was brought almost to the point of extinction to now have a migration mass large enough to track is wonderful. I also belong to three other private Purple Martin forums that collect data and share information. OakleyOK...I've never had a problem with wasps in my gourds. Of course, my gourds are kept taken down, cleaned, and stored in the basement as soon as the chicks leave, usually around Aug. 1. I set the colony up again around April 15. I keep duct tape over the gourds' entry holes until the PMs actually arrive. That keeps the non-native vermin, such as starlings and English House Sparrows out.

Carolyn--glad to hear from you and yes this weather is doing a number on nests, birds and people. Guess you have heard about all the flooding in Minot. It has been so interesting driving there. I have had to go in twice a week for therapy on my back after slipping early March on ice. NOT FUN!! Anyway, I think I too have lost a nest from a Robin, but not sure it is crows or a neighbors cat. Dumb bird just would not stay on the nest and keep quiet. It is a wonder that any Robins make it. I don't have the houses out that you due, even though son in law said I could. He has been so busy with DD getting chemo treatments, his work in the city, late snows etc. Oh well, there is always next year. We just barely got the garden in. Thanks for keeping us updated. Marie from the other end of ND.

If at all possible, I will try to get a video. He was on top of the nest box just outside my kitchen window and facing the main tomato garden. Wrens are great for keeping tomato plants bug-free. He's hopping up and down on top of the box. Sometimes with both feet, sometimes on first the left foot - hop, hop, hop - and then the right foot - hop, hop, hop. Sometimes his hops take him up a couple inches; sometimes a foot or more. He has both wings dropped down with his head bobbing. Then holds first one wing and then the other out at various angles and contortions...all the while doing the multi-footed polka, and singing his fool heart out the entire time. He flies straight up a couple feet and then zig-zags back down to the nest box top. Again, singing that fool heart out. I expected him to have a major coronary at any second. She looked at him; she looked in the box, (a very fine Coveside chickadee box, with slate squirrel guard, by the way) did the birdy version of an eye roll, and zoomed off. Her mama raised her better than to hang out with that sort of boy. But then...good girls and bad boys...we know how that story plays out at times!