Kelly,

Does anyone have a handle on the total number of breeding Purple Martins in
Washington?

Also, has anyone seen or known of a martin east of the Cascade crest in WA?
In 18 years, I have not recorded any or come across any published reference
of them east of the mountains.


Andy Stepniewski
Wapato WA




>Way back, when Drs. Suckley and Cooper were among the few naturalists in
>Washington Territory, they recorded their observations of Pacific Northwest
>wildlife in "The Natural of Oregon and Washington," published in 1860. They
>indicated that purple martins were very rare in the region though a nesting
>pair had been seen in the oaks on the Nisqually prairies. By the early
>1900's purple martins were reportedly common nesting in the "business
>districts" of the larger cities in Puget Sound country. In 1945, about the
>time of the arrival of starlings, Earl Larrison reported 12,000+ purple
>martins using a pre-migration roost at Green Lake... whaaat! unbelievable.
>
>Could purple martins have responded favorably to human developments along
>the Puget Sound shoreline? Were starlings the real reason for their
>eventual decline? Why have they now rebounded with the provision of nest
>boxes placed out over the water? Is it, as Dennis suggests, avoidance of
>over-water situations by starlings?
>
>The purple martins I monitored in Budd Inlet during the late 1980's were
>late bringing off broods. There may have been a few fledged broods in the
>first week of July, but most were not out until the last two weeks of July.
>
>Kelly McAllister
>alleyes at mail.tss.net
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