Bye Bye Birdies
See You in April
Happy Holidays
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| Laurie Doss, volunteer, banded birds |
Tom Mitchell, volunteer, opened bands |
Milan Bull, CAS Senior Director of Science and Conservation |
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| Geoffrey Krukar, CT DEEP staff, banded birds and recorded data |
Audra Valailis(L) CT DEEP staff, banded birds and recorded data |
Barbara Mitchell(R at gourds), volunteer, transported birds |
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| Gazebo Phil | Dr. Twan Leenders, CAS Conservation Biologist |
Laurie Fortin, CT DEEP staff, banded birds |
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| Ann Murray, volunteer, aged and weighed birds |
Tammy Conley, volunteer, transported birds |
Scott Kruitbosch(L), CAS Conservation Technician |
Closed 'till Next Season! | |
| EXTERIOR CAMERA | INSIDE THE GOURD |
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Feed Me First!
You have been watching live video of Purple Martins' life on the wing. These birds arrived in April after a long and arduous journey from Brazil, their winter home. They have raised a new family, fed their babies all day every day and now mom, dad and the young ones have already left home. The journey ahead:
Over Four Thousand Miles!
But wait! There's more:
Next year many of these same birds will return to this same location for another breeding season. We hope you will too.
John Tautin of the Purple Martin Conservation Association
says these nitty gritty PM's can fly six hundred miles non-stop!
This has been a remarkably productive breeding season. 185 chicks from Purple Martin Acres by the Sea are on their way to Brazil. The naked, tiny, helpless birds we saw hatch less than two months ago, have jumped into the wild green yonder below.
We call it fledging, they call it scary!
Gazebo Phil
Stump Them!
Stump our young Audubon naturalists, send your questions as instructed on our Web site.
Gazebo Phil
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Departure Time
The five Purple Martin chicks in the cam gourd have all fledged. A small number of gourds still have nestlings being fed by their parents, but before long they will be ready to join the rest of their fledged friends. As you have seen the young are spending the day away from the camera, and on some nights, the parents return to the gourd to roost. Do not worry about the young as they will be safely tucked away in a carefully chosen roosting place somewhere around the nearby neighborhood. They have learned a great deal from their parents in a short time and are fully independent.
In the next couple of weeks the Purple Martins will start to move, some dispersing to nearby areas in Connecticut, others starting the journey south right away. During this time we ask you to be on the lookout for banded Purple Martins. The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection banded six of the largest martin colonies in the state with unique color bands. Gazebo Phil’s young birds received red Connecticut bands in addition to the required silver federal band. If you see a Purple Martin with any color band, please send us a report with all of the information you can and we will pass it along to the DEEP. We will also post this with data on the bird so everyone can learn where it came from and where it was found.
We are very pleased to announce that the Purple Martins at the Connecticut Audubon Society Coastal Center at Milford Point and the CAS-managed Stratford Point successfully nested this year. Milford Point has several nests and Stratford Point, despite the fact there were only two pairs arriving late in June, has one nest in the new gourd tree. The Purple Martins may be finished until next spring, but we are not. CAS works year-round on Connecticut’s shoreline to protect and enhance habitat, survey bird populations, and educate the public on how sensitive and critical our coasts are. If you visit Stratford or Milford Point you will be able to see this work first-hand. Please join us in helping to restore the shore and other vital habitats across Connecticut for our native birds.
Conservation Technician
Questions From Our Visitors
Q: Hi GazeboPhil, Just want to Thank You for another great year watching the Martins. Tuned in tonight (10:30PM Sunday) and see your Bye Bye Birdies post, but what a surprise I got - 2 birds in the pod - sleeping I guess. Don't know if the babies or Mom & Dad - but a treat no less. Thanks again! -- Barbara R., Milford,CTA: Mom and dad will be returning to the gourd on most nights now that the young have fledged and learned how to function on their own. Their job is over after successfully raising five chicks. Those five will be finding their own roosts each night, but the parents will enjoy the comforts of home until they decide it is time to start heading south.
Scott - Conservation Technician
Q: Dear Gazebo Phil,
Just wondering if the federal government protects Purple Martins? If not, is there any funding or grants that Purple Martins receive to help their numbers improve? -- kerri c., Attleboro,MA
A: The United States Migratory Bird Treaty Act protects all birds including the Purple Martin, making it illegal to collect their eggs, nests, feathers, or harm any birds. They are federally listed as a Species of Concern and state listed as Threatened. This essentially means extra resources are put to helping the species by restoring or providing habitat and monitoring their breeding closely.
As you may have seen the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is carefully monitoring Purple Martins and color banded them at six of the largest colonies across the state, including Gazebo Phil's. This banding project was funded by the Connecticut Endangered Species/Wildlife Tax Check-off Fund. DEEP hopes this will provide funding in the future as well and appreciates the support of Connecticut residents. Perhaps other states have similar programs our viewers can support.
Scott - Conservation Technician
Q: Love the site. Is there a method wherein I can be notified when the next generation starts. -- Stanley J., Titusville,FL
A: The next generation will not start until spring 2012. For a few weeks we will get to watch the young birds fledge and become independent. All of the martins will start to head south gradually in August. We would expect these birds to return to us in the first week of next April.
Scott - Conservation Technician
Click HERE for more Questions & Answers!
Dear Gazebophiles,
Below is a letter we received from a U.S. soldier in Iraq. Pardon our pride, we are all pumped around here knowing that our BHU (Bird Housing Unit) is playing a CSU (Combat Housing Unit) somewhere in what is probably a lousy neighborhood.
For our soldier visiting us: Thanks, Ms.W. (You didn't tell us your rank) You made our day. You might say, we're tickled purple!
Gazebophil
I am an active duty Soldier, currently stationed in Iraq, as part of the combat stress control team. I can't tell you how great it has been the last few weeks, to check in to your webcam, in anticipation of the arrival of a nesting pair of these beautiful and interesting birds. And how exciting it is to watch them begin to set up house in the gourd. I love to hear the whole flock- my CHU (Combat Housing Unit) is filled with their songs. I have sent the site to my team members and am certain they are watching in wonder, as well. I will be giving it to many of our stresed out soldiers, too. It is a very wholesome, relaxing and stress-reducing activity! Thank you for setting this up! I am eager to follow the progression from setting up house, to flight of the fledgelings!
Glenda W., IRAQ
