Hi Larry, Thanks for the really cool photos and story. I agree with Connie this is the first report/record of Purple Martins nesting at the Fill. Also noteworthy that they used a wood duck box. The only other time I'm aware that martins used wood duck boxes in WA was back in the 1980s at Fort Lewis. In 1981 at Johnson Marsh Wally Wilkens of Tacoma Audubon reported it to Dave Fehling. Dave at the time was working with Jack Davis, but to the best of my knowledge, all their attempts to introduce nestboxes to Western Purple Martins up until then had taken place only on the marine shoreline in the south Sound. Johnson Marsh was the first freshwater situation they came across as far as I know. The following year Jack and Dave along with some other folks installed 11 Purple Martin nestboxes at Johnson Marsh. By 1988 there were 18 pairs of martins using nestboxes there. Another pair of martins used a wood duck box at Farrel Marsh in 1984, after the ducks finished nesting, according to Jock Beal. Fort Lewis then was home to the largest concentration of nesting martins associated with freshwater in Washington, and I expect that remains true today.

The Heron is a serious threat to the martins, especially the fledglings as they return to the cavity at night. Back in 1999 Kevin Li observed a Great Blue Heron kill a martin as they returned to their nestbox at dusk at Shilshole in Ballard. Herons preying on martins has been documented in BC as well.

The bird on the left in photo 12 and in the center in photo 13 is clearly a male, a subadult, in second year plumage. If no one observed any fully adult, after second year males at this location it's most likely this second year bird was half of the breeding pair. Second year males are often associated with new breeding locations. If he survives and returns next year he will be in full adult male plumage. Another way to determine sex is by song, females call, but only males sing that long drawn out melodious song that ends with several clicking sounds.

Thanks again. And if anyone out there in Tweeterland has any corrections or additions to anything I've reported here, I would be very happy to hear from you.

Stan Kostka
lynnandstan at earthlink.net
Arlington WA


Subject: Union Bay Watch } Purple Martins
Date: Sun Aug 18 2019 14:43 pm
From: ldhubbell AT comcast.net
Tweeters,
This week�s post covers some of the interactions the new, nesting Purple Martins are having with the previously established species around Union Bay.
I hope you enjoy the story!
https://unionbaywatch.blogspot...
Have a great day on Union Bay, where nature lives in the city!
Larry Hubbell