I've never found any correlation between tide condition and martin activity,
but generally I seem to have better luck at dawn or dusk; it may also be
that the martins have already left, as Leslie Ann Rose has reported from the
Hylebos.

My impression is that martins feed fairly high in the air, unlike many other
swallows.

Today I was at the Nisqually all day, by the mouth of McAllister Creek; saw
no martins at all. Did any nest there this year? Fortunately, ospreys,
herons, Caspian terns, and kingfishers graced us with their company much of
the time.

Check out our lakes web page!
http://splash.metrokc.gov/wlr/waterres/lakes/index.htm

Kevin Li
King County Environmental Lab
322 W. Ewing St.
Seattle, WA 98119-1507

Mail Stop: LAB

(206) 684-2344
(206) 684-2395 fax
kevin.li at metrokc.gov





> ----------
> From: StahlfeldE at aol.com[SMTP:StahlfeldE at aol.com]
> Reply To: StahlfeldE at aol.com
> Sent: Monday, August 24, 1998 10:42 AM
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: Purple Martin on Vashon
>
> Tweets:
>
> While on Vashon Saturday afternoon I went down to the fishing pier where
> Kevin
> Li saw the Purple Martins. I saw only one, showing a glorious purple-blue
> reflection with the sun behind me. Tide was all the way in, numerous d-c
> cormornants, and a single osprey flew in and out.
>
> When the tide is out there is quite a bit of exposed rocky beach by that
> pier.
> Does anyone know if the martins hang around exposed beaches, where there
> may
> be more insects when the tide is out? If so, maybe it's better to check
> the
> tide tables before making a special trip.
>
> Eric Stahlfeld
> Burien, WA
>