First purple martin fledglings

  • Twelve round bird houses in a ring around a pole, against a clear sky. There are two dark-colored birds perched in front of one of the bird houses. There is a decoy bird on the structure near them.

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    In 2018, we installed a purple martin nesting colony at the Field Station as part of the Osprey Nesting Platform and Habitat Enhancement Project. For the first time in spring 2021, we had a pair of purple martins in the nesting gourds.

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  • A picture taken through a telescope of a brown speckled bird perched outside a plastic nest structure.

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    View through a spotting scope of a sub-adult purple martin perched on the outside of a nesting gourd.

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  • Two small eggs rest in a nest made of twigs, dried leaves, feathers, and fresh green leaves. The nest is inside a plastic structure.

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    Two purple martin eggs. Note the nest is lined with green leaves, which are the final nest addition before eggs are laid.

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  • Two small chicks nestle against each other in a nest made of twigs, dried leaves, feathers, and drying green leaves. The nest is inside a plastic structure. The baby birds don't have any feathers yet.

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    3-day old nestlings.

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  • Two chicks nestle against each other in a nest made of twigs and dried leaves. The nest is inside a plastic structure. The baby birds have dark downy feathers and pin feathers on their wings and tail.

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    10-day old nestlings.

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  • Two chicks nestle against each other in a nest made of twigs and dried leaves. The nest is inside a plastic structure. The baby birds have have most of their feathers but are still a bit downy.

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    17-day old nestlings.

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  • Two chicks nestle against each other in a nest made of twigs and dried leaves. The nest is inside a plastic structure. The baby birds almost look like adult birds.

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    27-day old nestlings, almost ready to fledge.

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