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The older martins, sometimes referred to as Scouts, will be the first martins to reach the United States. Reports indicate scouts have entered Florida. The martins will continue north as insects become available, reaching our area in March.
Scouts are martins that bred in the US or Canada last year and are returning to their established nesting site. The martins that were bom the previous year usually arrive about four weeks after the adults. If you are starting a new colony, these are the birds you are trying to attract.
Purple Martins feed almost entirely on flying insects and do this very efficiently. Martins are aerial acrobats while catching flying insects and an entertaining site to see. Martins feed upon the insects themselves as well as feed them to their young.
As the Purple Martins start to arrive at their selected nesting site a very exciting activity starts to unfold. This is the time when martins claim their territories and companions.
Males and females generally arrive at about the same time, the dominant male bird claims his territory. He stakes out his territory by making his presence known in or at a certain cavity or cavities. Once he has decided which he wants he will defend it against all other males.
Nest building usually gets underway about a month after the first birds arrive. It is an exciting time because it is a sure sign that the efforts one has put forth to attract Purple Martins is paying off.
The male martin usually is the bird that inif> ates the nest building cycle. He can be seen on the ground picking up nest material. The material for the nest can include grass clippings, pine needles, straw, twigs and many other materials.
During the nest building phase the female usually gets involved after a day or so and may even
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