Terry Suchma
02-03-2007, 08:45 AM
Dear Landlords,
The storms that raced across Florida in the middle of the night and blindslighted people as they slept becomes one of the worst supercells of tornadic activity in years. Nineteen people were killed and the storm produced a lot of damage in its wake.
Our hearts go out to these people, many of which, huddled in their bathtubs or wedged themselves between their mattress and box springs to protect them from the wrath of the fierce storms.
In one instance, an elderly couple did wedge themselves between their mattress and box springs. The wife told her long-time husband during the storm that she was thankful for their good life together. She was 77 and she perished; her husband survived.
Friends of The Purple Martin Society in Port Lucie, FL, Dotty and Hank Hull experienced what many martin landlords experience in such hostile windy weather. While the brunt of the storm went more northward and missed Port Lucie, winds across the state on Wednesday to Thursday were brutal, showing something was definitely blowing in. What happened to the Hulls is that their martin house blew over.
It really is the best thing that when you purchase or buy a martin house, to buy the one with the best structural integrity. This includes a very strong pole and at best, one that is one-piece. With poles that are segmented, they are akin to a chain of links and the chain is only as strong as the weakest link. The same is true of segmented poles. One that consistes of 2 areas of weakness: where the ground socket and first piece join; and, where the first and second piece join.
Yes, I know that any house under the right conditions can fail. I know that many of you are saying the even the most thick wooden pole or one piece pole will fail, that is true. What I am saying is that flimsy houses and poles are more likely to fail and crash than ones on stronger poles.
Think it over very carefully when you are considering to buy that plastic house. For me, I hate them for the martins. Consider that the total weight of this house does not equate into manufacturers providing a strong pole. These houses are such death traps for martins in high winds. The thin lined, segmented poles fail and they bend or crash to the ground. In such a scenario, you can imagine that plastic houses shatter and the deadly consequence is the loss of the martins, eggs and/or young inside.
Take this advice to heart if you are considering buying a martin house for the first time or adding to your martin housing. The flimsiness of such plastic houses is one of several reasons why you should not purchase an inexpensive plastic martin house.
I must also tell you in light of all the terrible havoc the rash of recent storms played across the heart area, from the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic coast, there was even more bad news---wildlife bad news.
If you have been reading either the Birds of a Feather Conference here on the RTCs or reading wildlife magazines or even the newspapers, you would know about the young flock of Whooping Cranes that were hatched in Baraboo, WI at the International Crane Foundation and are guided on their first migration south to the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge near Crystal River, Fl., by ultra light vehicles.
They numbered 18 this year after the two month long trip from WI to FL. They were all killed in the storm yesterday. It is a tremendous loss for the group that works so hard in the conservation of Whooping Cranes. It is a personal loss, I am sure, but also the loss of these beloved birds is a loss of a year's labor of love.
Read the article here:
Endangered Cranes Killed in Fla. Storms
By JAMES A. CARLSON
The Associated Press
Saturday, February 3, 2007; 8:03 AM
MILWAUKEE -- All 18 endangered young whooping cranes that were led south from Wisconsin last fall as part of a project to create a second migratory flock of the birds were killed in storms in Florida, a spokesman said.
The cranes were being kept in an enclosure at the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge near Crystal River, Fla., when violent storms moved in Thursday night, said Joe Duff, co-founder of Operation Migration, the organization coordinating the project.
For the entire article, click here and let us remember the people that died and let us all be grateful:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/03/AR2007020300306.html
Here is information on the International Crane Foundation's Project Migration (leading first year cranes to Florida):
http://www.operationmigration.org/work_wcranes.html
Terry
The storms that raced across Florida in the middle of the night and blindslighted people as they slept becomes one of the worst supercells of tornadic activity in years. Nineteen people were killed and the storm produced a lot of damage in its wake.
Our hearts go out to these people, many of which, huddled in their bathtubs or wedged themselves between their mattress and box springs to protect them from the wrath of the fierce storms.
In one instance, an elderly couple did wedge themselves between their mattress and box springs. The wife told her long-time husband during the storm that she was thankful for their good life together. She was 77 and she perished; her husband survived.
Friends of The Purple Martin Society in Port Lucie, FL, Dotty and Hank Hull experienced what many martin landlords experience in such hostile windy weather. While the brunt of the storm went more northward and missed Port Lucie, winds across the state on Wednesday to Thursday were brutal, showing something was definitely blowing in. What happened to the Hulls is that their martin house blew over.
It really is the best thing that when you purchase or buy a martin house, to buy the one with the best structural integrity. This includes a very strong pole and at best, one that is one-piece. With poles that are segmented, they are akin to a chain of links and the chain is only as strong as the weakest link. The same is true of segmented poles. One that consistes of 2 areas of weakness: where the ground socket and first piece join; and, where the first and second piece join.
Yes, I know that any house under the right conditions can fail. I know that many of you are saying the even the most thick wooden pole or one piece pole will fail, that is true. What I am saying is that flimsy houses and poles are more likely to fail and crash than ones on stronger poles.
Think it over very carefully when you are considering to buy that plastic house. For me, I hate them for the martins. Consider that the total weight of this house does not equate into manufacturers providing a strong pole. These houses are such death traps for martins in high winds. The thin lined, segmented poles fail and they bend or crash to the ground. In such a scenario, you can imagine that plastic houses shatter and the deadly consequence is the loss of the martins, eggs and/or young inside.
Take this advice to heart if you are considering buying a martin house for the first time or adding to your martin housing. The flimsiness of such plastic houses is one of several reasons why you should not purchase an inexpensive plastic martin house.
I must also tell you in light of all the terrible havoc the rash of recent storms played across the heart area, from the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic coast, there was even more bad news---wildlife bad news.
If you have been reading either the Birds of a Feather Conference here on the RTCs or reading wildlife magazines or even the newspapers, you would know about the young flock of Whooping Cranes that were hatched in Baraboo, WI at the International Crane Foundation and are guided on their first migration south to the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge near Crystal River, Fl., by ultra light vehicles.
They numbered 18 this year after the two month long trip from WI to FL. They were all killed in the storm yesterday. It is a tremendous loss for the group that works so hard in the conservation of Whooping Cranes. It is a personal loss, I am sure, but also the loss of these beloved birds is a loss of a year's labor of love.
Read the article here:
Endangered Cranes Killed in Fla. Storms
By JAMES A. CARLSON
The Associated Press
Saturday, February 3, 2007; 8:03 AM
MILWAUKEE -- All 18 endangered young whooping cranes that were led south from Wisconsin last fall as part of a project to create a second migratory flock of the birds were killed in storms in Florida, a spokesman said.
The cranes were being kept in an enclosure at the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge near Crystal River, Fla., when violent storms moved in Thursday night, said Joe Duff, co-founder of Operation Migration, the organization coordinating the project.
For the entire article, click here and let us remember the people that died and let us all be grateful:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/03/AR2007020300306.html
Here is information on the International Crane Foundation's Project Migration (leading first year cranes to Florida):
http://www.operationmigration.org/work_wcranes.html
Terry