the martin season is well into the nesting phase and as of Saturday May 26 fifty-nine nests were with eggs. Hatching will begin any day then the fun and busy phase of feeding hungry mouths begins. I will check nests again the first of second of June and expect a few more nests to become active with eggs.
With that being the good news the bad news visited last night with a big series of hoots. Around 11 pm the call of the great horned owl seemed to be just outside the bedroom door. A second owl could be heard further off and the two seemed to be having a conversation in the night. After going out to have a look my suspicion was correct. The GHO was perched atop the T-14 house where I had seen subtle signs of bending of the perch rods the last few days. Always a concern, this year signs of visits by the owl had been non existent until now.
plucked feathers of (? Mockingbird?) found under housing may 29 morning. Pretty sure these are not martins this time.
mornings will now be time for through examination under the poles. The effectiveness of the owl guards and the ChirpyNest design will be tested once again and time will tell the tale.
In an effort to more easily monitor activity I opened up a visual path through the maple tree outside the bedroom and only have to open the door and look with binoculars.
Window through maple tree looking out to the t-14 and colony.
future nest check numbers and close observations will determine if the owl is hurting my colony or just using the poles as hunting and feeding perches.