Author’s Note: The authors and content creators of Gardens to Gables typically attempt to avoid confrontational topics and as such this post may “ruffle the feathers” of ornithologists, entomologists, archaeologists, and Baptists alike. That being said, I speak from a position of observation and no ill feelings are intended.
People find the coming spring in many natural signs that surround us this time of year. The host of this blog finds solace in daffodil and Bridal Wreath Spirea blooms. Some simply look forward to warmer days outnumbering the dark, cloudy passing of winter. Whether your sign of spring is forsythia, tulip, quince, spring peepers, or simply sunshine and longer days, one harbinger of spring with its own cult following is the arrival of Purple Martins.
Purple Martin (Progne subis) in flight. Courtesy of The National Audubon Society.
As North America’s largest member of the swallow family, Progne subis (Purple Martin) overwinter in Brazil, Bolivia, and Peru before beginning their pan-continental flight to North America where they fledge before returning to their winter home.
In my part of Kentucky, Martin scouts first arrive in early March with the remaining flock coming over the next few weeks. By August, with the new members of their species, they return south. Every Purple Martin landlord is on pins and needles waiting for the signature chirps and chortles that are unlike any other bird. Their aerial acrobatics on warm summer mornings are as enchanting as any natural spectacle that exists.
Purple Martins in a Native American context. Courtesy of Cahokia Mounds State Park.
Purple Martins have a very symbiotic relationship with humans. Much like their avian cousins, the Eastern Bluebird, Purple Martins have no natural home save the rare case in which they lodge in an abandoned Woodpecker hole in a dead tree. Instead they rely on the gourds and multi-apartment houses erected by humans. In fact, archaeologists speculate that southern Native American groups, most prominently the Mississippian Cultures of the late woodland period, erected bottle gourds in their elaborate settlements along the Mississippi River.
Bottle Gourd seed packet. Courtesy of the Burpee Seed Company.
Now, to some of my controversial thoughts on the species:
Housing – Many Purple Martin landlords, as we are known, invest thousands towards elaborate colony housing. That being said, my housing of choice is a 150 foot steel cable strung between two 14 foot tall posts with 30 one piece plastic gourds hung at four foot intervals. This is the absolute cheapest housing arrangement possible. The cable can be lowered and raised with the aid of a hand winch at one end.
Despite my low-rent district housing (call me a slumlord) I still attract approximately 50 Martins on their annual migration to South-Central Kentucky. The more high-rent district landlords, provide pine straw, regularly treat their housing with diatomaceous earth or Sevin dust to keep mites down while also providing egg shell and any number of other luxuries. I truly believe that once a Martin colony finds a home they like they will come back year after year and make it their own.
Siting – Puple Martins prefer open areas that allow ample ingress and egress for their signature foraging flights. These open areas also allow them to keep an eye out for their mortal enemies: hawks. They love human interaction and actually prefer proximity to homes or farm buildings.
My site is near a busy road and adjacent to my garden spot. Tractors and other human noises seem to not bother them and you can regularly find me standing below their swinging gourds staring in awe like a dumb-struck idiot. Who knows what the passing neighbors think. They also like a fresh supply of water and when available mud to aid in nest building. An added bonus in siting my colony housing are overhead power lines that give them a great perch.
The author’s great-great grandfather, Thomas Lindsey Thomason, Jr. at his home in Butler County, Kentucky with probable Purple Martin housing in upper, left corner of photo, circa 1920. Photograph in collection of the author.
Trees – Purple Martins hate trees. Purple Martins love trees. Yes, you read that correctly! Trees that crowd Martin housing cause anxiety and tend to scare off future tenants because of their fear of snakes and other tree-borne predators. Siting colonies as far away as possible from large trees helps them avoid these predators. While hating trees, they also rely on tender green leaves for nesting material. Mine are particularly fond of Maple leaves. They swoop in and grab chunks out of leaves to incorporate into their straw and mud nests prior to egg-laying. They will never be found perching in trees.
More conventional Purple Martin Housing in Warren County, Kentucky. Photograph by John A. White.
Food – This topic is perhaps the most misunderstood of all Purple Martin knowledge. Everyone has the belief that Purple Martins eat eight to 42 times their weight in mosquitoes every day. In my close to a decade of loving these birds, I have not seen my mosquito population reduced by one annoying insect. In fact, I’m not so sure they don’t hitch a ride on the backs of the Purple Martins. Instead, they rely on larger winged insects, caught mid-flight, for their diet. My colony loves Dragonflies and nothing is more special than seeing the birds return to their nest with a dragonfly in-beak to feed their fledglings. The ground below my gourds will be littered with dragonfly wings and carcasses by the end of the nesting season.
Aluminum, 12 apartment Purple Martin House. Photograph by J. Eric Thomason.
Although too late for the 2025 season, I hope you too will be bit by this bug and consider erecting your own housing by mid-February of 2026. Start learning now and by then you too can be a Purple Martin slumlord such as myself. Ignoring all of the literature, Facebook groups, and internet rabbit-holes in favor of trial, error, and observation that make up many of my gardening ventures. Happy Spring!
