![]() When the work was done we all stood back and watched the adult martins, which had been hovering over us the entire time, fly into their respective nests, with mouths filled with food for their kids. All the counting and cranking was a lot of work for Mary, but fortunately she had plenty of help from her ten-year-old daughter. Mary worked quickly, recording ages and the number of eggs/chicks in each nest. The tiny chicks immediately opened their beaks in hopes that Mary would shove in some food, but she was fresh out of Purina Martin Chow. One large nest contained seven very young and very hungry baby martins. She opened each cubicle and counted the eggs and chicks. Using a hand crank, Mary slowly lowered the first house so she could inspect all twelve apartments. Martin houses are typically erected at the tops of very tall metal poles. Now I understand why birds and golfers hang out there…except for the golf part. And while I’m not a big golf fan, and usually make a wise crack about golfers, I have to admit that after walking such beautiful grounds it made me want to join a country club. I wish I could invite the entire Cape to go see these martins, but both colonies are on fancy private golf courses, so Joe Public isn’t allowed. Last week Mary invited me to accompany her as she tended her two martin colonies. She’s very nice.Īfter making her discovery, Mary put up a brand new house for the birds and then established a second colony a few miles away. Then, around 2009, Mary Keleher, the former president of the Cape Cod Bird Club, discovered a small colony of martins living in a rundown birdhouse in your hometown of Mashpee. And for the first twenty-seven years that was true. ![]() This is because there are no breeding Purple Martins on Cape Cod. That’s what I wore.įor the past thirty years I have been telling my customers that buying an expensive martin house is a waste of money. ![]() Nike? What am I saying? I meant Buster Browns. Nike could have saved me a lot of trouble if they had invented a sneaker that would fit on either foot. I was too busy trying to figure out how to put my shoes on the correct feet. When I was in the fifth grade I didn’t know anything about birds. I assume the mother bird sleeps in the nest with her babies, but what about the dad? Does he squeeze in the box too, or does he sleep someplace else? My question is about their roosting habits. I really like the way so many of them live in one big birdhouse. One of my favorite birds is the Purple Martin. ![]()
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