Purple Martins in Austin

An Update on the Virginia Avenue Sanctuary
Dated: June 27, 2011

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The fledge count at the sanctuary continues to be a dismal affair. Of the 25 birds we had remaining last week only 5 were estimated to fledge. We have 16 young remaining in the nests and they all look healthy thanks to last weeks rain and totally awesome efforts by Dr Sumner to keep them alive. Here are the totals:

379 eggs laid, none counted
207 young hatched, 16 remaining
58 birds fledged

In a couple of weeks the birds at the sanctuary will all leave and we can transfer this data to PMCA. It will be interesting to see how other landlords in the Texas area did during this season. I will attempt to get that information later in the summer and post it to y'all.

I heard tell that the bulk of the birds are congregating near Highland Mall in anticipation of the migration back to Brazil. There is also a rumor that they take a short vacation near Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana to relax, fatten up before making that trek. Heck it makes perfect sense to me...just wonder how hard it is to fly with those shiney beads around their necks...:)

Regards,
Steve

P.S. It was a tremendous learning experience for Laurie and I working with Dr Sumner and all the landlords at the sanctuary. Although the numbers this year are a bit low the potential for success was only a few rain storms and a half dozen cooler days away from a really good year. For me that is enough incentive to be ready for next year!

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Summary Report