Todd Stawicki’s project consisted of
obtaining the materials for, constructing, and installing four purple martin colony boxes.
This is the only one along the Middle Brook Trail.
The purple martin is the largest member of the swallow family in North America. They
migrate to the Amazon basin in the winter. The adult males are all dark blue or purple,
but the females have grey throats and undersides. They have a notched tail and triangular
wings. The subadults are grayer than the adults. They feed entirely on large insects such
as: flies, wasps, bees, moths, and butterflies 100 to 200 feet above the ground. They have
a complex song.
The purple martin (progne subis, 8") relies entirely upon people for housing and
likes to be near human activity. People have been providing nest sites for them for
centuries and human activity keeps some of the martins’ predators away. The purple
martins are extremely loyal to their nest sites and return generation after generation.
A purple martin colony requires maintenance to
be successful. The openings to the nest cavities should be cleaned and closed after the
birds migrate south. The openings should be reopened just before the martins return to the
area, which for Bridgewater is about April 1 for established colonies. It is important to
orient the box exactly the same each time it is installed, as this is critical to help the
birds recognize it as theirs. For new colonies the openings should remain closed for
another four to five weeks. This allows for the later arrival of the younger birds, which
are most likely to start new colonies, to arrive. It is important to keep starlings and
house sparrows from taking over the site. These aggressive non-native birds do not migrate
and will build their nests before the purple martins arrive if they can get into the
cavities.
The house sparrow (passer domesticus, 6.25") is smaller than the purple martin and is
not a threat to adults. However, they will destroy eggs and kill the purple martins’
young if the nest is left unguarded. The house sparrow was introduced to North America in
1853 with the intent that they would control insects. By 1900 they were the most numerous
bird in the United States and were displacing native cavity nesting birds.
The starling (sturnus vulgaris, 8.5") is about the same size as the martin and is
dangerous to the adults as well. A group dedicated to introducing every bird species
mentioned by Shakespeare introduced the first sixty starlings from Europe to New
York’s Central Park in 1890. Since they have no natural predators in the new world,
their numbers have swelled into the millions and results in many problems.
Todd Stawicki and Troop # 154 in April 1999 installed the colony box.
The Township is interested in any group or individual willing to help maintain and monitor
the colony.
