Southeastern Purple Martin
Project
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Furthermore, this project will help bridge the gap between observational data and physical/real statistical data in the world of community science. We conduct our work in areas which have yet to be thoroughly studied. Unfortunately, like many migratory bird species, Purple Martins are in decline. This study will help us to better understand why and to help the populations to hopefully rebound.
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The purpose of this project is to contribute to the collective knowledge of the Eastern US Purple Martin (Progne subis subis) by understanding site fidelity, dispersal population status, and migratory pathways for several colonies located in Alabama, Georgia and Florida. The Eastern Purple Martin almost entirely relies on artifically supplied, man-made housing to sustain the current populations. Purple Martin "landlords" are a crucial component of our study and to the continuation of Purple Martins in the Eastern US. We work alongside landlords at our study sites to monitor and study the martins.
Our goal is to minimumally band 20% of each host colony. For banding, we use color bands in addition to the federal bands. We also deploy tracking devices to track migration routes. Between 2022-2024, we will be deploying around 20-25 geolocators between four sites. This deployment will help us determine migration routes and wintering grounds of these host colonies.
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If you are a Purple Martin landlord or know of a breeding site, please let us know if you see one of our color bands! We use a different color for each state (AL = blue, FL = green, GA = yellow). Every band has a state code (AL, FL, GA) followed by a letter (i.e. A,B,C) and three digits). We use orange bands on adults that been a part of our geolocator program. Please email Emma our director if you see one: emma@bandingcoalition.org.
To help support this project, see "Adopt-a-Martin" program under the Support Our Cause page. We can not thank our initial Purple Martin landlords enough for being an integral part of developing this project: Tiffany Anderson, Brad Biddle, Lynn Daniel, and Barbara Almario (FWC). We also would like to thank Dr. T.J. Zenzal with USGS for his partnership in this project.
