Purple Martins were the main attraction at the recent Friends of Hammonasset annual meeting. The presentation on the Purple Martins was provided by John Picard, the Vice President of the Menunkatuck Audubon Society.

He has been monitoring the Purple Martins at Hammonasset State Park since 2005.  He reported that roughly 110 Purple Martins fledged in 2010, nearly doubling their numbers from 2009.  Purple Martins, according to Picard, have about a 50% breeding success rate. 

Five facts about Purple Martins

 1. The species is on the “species of special concern list” in Connecticut.  (There are two levels that indicate higher danger: “threatened” and “endangered”).

2. Purple Martins migrate between North and South America, a distance of about 5,000 miles, in 7 days.

3. Purple Martins are the only species of birds in North America that are completely dependent on humans (to provide housing).

4. Purple Martins are secondary cavity nesters, and will happily nest near homes.

5. These birds will try to return to the same house, same cavity, each year upon their return from South America.

What you need to know if you want to attract Purple Martins to your backyard

1. Picard said, “If you’re going to put up houses, monitoring the house is the most important thing to do (to prevent the nest being taken over by invasive birds such as house sparrows and starlings or nest parasites.  [The two other most important things to do are] to monitor the boxes.  And to monitor the boxes.”

2. If you’re interested in buying a house or box for Purple Martins, you can choose from wooden houses (provides the best insulation), aluminum houses (protects against parasites) or gourds (these cost less money but are more difficult to monitor).

3. The nest should be cleaned every 7 days at most.

Officers also elected at annual meeting

Business conducted at the meeting also included electing the board’s officers.  The following nominated persons were elected:

• President: Deanna Becker
• Vice President: Marcy Klattenberg
• Treasurer: Jean Russman
• Recording Secretary: Maureen Egan

The election was administered by Dave Rathbun at the start of the meeting.

How can you help?

 
The Friends of Hammonasset is seeking volunteers to fill the following roles:

1. Publicity & Grant Writing

2. Park Docents (If interested, please contact Ranger Russ Miller at (203) 245-8743)

3. Annual Plant Sale in May 2011

4. Trail Maintenance (next date is 3/19/2011 from 10 am to 1 pm at West Beach.  Contact Sally Sperling at goldspurs@comcast.net for more information)

5. Hammonasset Butterfly Gardens

For additional details regarding volunteer opportunities with the Friends of Hammonasset, visit their website (http://www.friendsofhammonasset.org/Volunteer.html).