Purple Martin Babies are Fledging!
May 31, 2015 14 Comments
Female Martin and Babies Wanting Fed
Martin Activity at Nesting Gourds
Martin Activity Above Gourd Rack (new fledgling is on lower left)
Martin Babies Grow Fast
Two of Three Eggs Have Just Hatched in Late Nest
Martin on Gourd Rack with Dragonfly for Babies
Closeup of Martin with Green Darner Dragonfly
Our purple martin babies have grown so fast! Many are fledging and taking their first flights this weekend. This year our count is 57 babies and 22 adults for a total of 79 birds. What a joy to see them do so well!
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naturetime 
great photos!!!
Thank you! They are such fun to watch.
fabulous clicks!
Thanks! They were very cooperative. 🙂
Reblogged this on MadeleineMaya.
This large number means your yard, bugs and their houses are all kept well. We had purple Martin houses but my ex would not help get them lowered to clean them. Wow! 🙂
Purple martins are a joy to have around! All our babies have fledged, and now we only see them maybe once a day stopping by to make sure their house is still there. Two more weeks and they’ll start gathering into large flocks in southern Florida before migrating back to Brazil.
So cute! And the photos are great, I am especially loving the first one 🙂
Thanks! We love our purple martins. We saw them the other day, but now I think they are on their way back to Brazil.
this is such a precious and heartwarming story! I’m so envious–you really have the magic touch with encouraging wildlife to make your backyard their home!
I’m growing gourds this year in the hopes that we can encourage Purple Martins to nest in the backyard next year! they used to be such a commonplace sight in Metro Vancouver, but “thanks” to the use of nasty pesticides, their numbers dwindled to dangerously low levels. 😦 they have made a small comeback, but I have not had the privilege of seeing them up close like you do!!
I’m excited you are growing gourds for purple martins! A wonderful group of the most helpful and encouraging people you could ever know for purple martins is at: http://www.purplemartin.org/ They have lots of ideas, and I really enjoy their magazine. The editor, Louise, is a true bird and nature lover. She might know of other martin landlords in your area. Good luck! And I’ll be happy to help with any tips or questions. 🙂
thank you, Pam, for all the helpful information! I’m checking out that link now! 🙂
It just amazes me how fast the grow and leave the nest!
Yes the babies grow up quickly. They have left the nest now, and the whole flock has left to head back to Brazil for the other half of the year!