STRATEGIES IN THE S & S WAR

By Rick Cruz, Vice President -- The Purple Martin Society, NA

The quest for the elusive Purple Martin has taught me one thing. European Starlings and House Sparrows are not to be tolerated. I have seen these birds drive flying martins out of my yard. These are martins that never even set a foot on the housing. I have seen male House Sparrows jump on the back of adult martins and drive them to the ground. I witnessed one lone male starling drive ten martins from their house and watched this same bird rampage through several martin nests destroying eggs with reckless abandon. No, these two exotic species are not to be tolerated what so ever!

It is a declaration of war!

Unfortunately, there is little mercy in war. It is a battle to the death. A war that never ends. It's a war with impossible odds, against an enemy that has more soldiers then we have weapons. But it is not hopeless. The battles can be won but it takes strength and courage from the ones pledged to protect their charges. I have fought this war for many years. Though it continues 365 days a year, I win all the battles as long as I stay at it. I have learned many things about the enemy and wish to share some of my tactics that have helped me to stay at the front.

HOUSE SPARROW STRATEGIES

Use several types of traps. The more traps you have the better. Bait traps and nestbox traps will increase the number of sparrows you will catch all year long.

Bait traps work well all year if baited only baited with bread. The use of bread reduces the risk of catching non-target species. Bread-baited traps will catch more House Sparrows in mid-summer due to huge number of recently-fledged sparrows. Bait traps come in two forms: repeating and single trapping.

Repeating bait traps catch huge amounts of sparrows all year but are more effective during midsummer through winter. Some of these traps are rather small 2"x 2" with a small wire elevator that carries an unsuspecting sparrow to a large holding compartment. This wire elevator then resets itself. The large holding compartment can hold a few dozen birds but only keep about six alive to function as decoys. A large trap called the V-Top trap works by luring sparrows to the bait through a V-slotted funnel. Once inside, the trapped birds cannot figure how to exit the trap so they remain trapped. The Purple Martin Society's' own Dennis Zwerenz has a revamped version of this trap called the Z-Trap. Dennis has made the V-top (funnel slot) trap escape proof and much more manageable. Currently this trap is too large for any urbanized areas being 4"x4"x8"but a smaller portable version is of the Z-trap is in its testing phase.

The "Single-Trapping Bait Trap" is best represented by the Trios ST-1 Trap. This trap has dual trapping compartments with a center holding compartment. Bait is added to the trapping compartments and a tripping mechanism closes an overhead trap door. Trapped sparrows soon move through a one-way door to the holding compartment. Keep at least two of these traps working during the spring and summer months. One trap you bait with bread and the other bait with nesting material. Sparrows like to put all sorts of trash in their nest, so place something eye catching in the trap they can't resist. Large feathers, string, yarn, and long wispy pieces of grass. This works especially well if you just removed a sparrow nest from something.

The most important thing a landlord can do to increase his catch ratio is to keep a few female sparrows alive next to the bait traps. Sparrows are highly social. They are never found alone. Many landlords have a hard time trying to catch one problem sparrow simply because they dispatch the ones they catch right away.

DO NOT DO THIS!

If necessary modify the holding compartment of the bait trap to increase the living space, or use a small birdcage. Keep a small bowl of feed and water at all times and keep 2 female sparrows alive. Take these captured sparrows in your hand and spread out one wing. Take a pair of scissors and carefully cut off the longest feathers at the top of the wing. Cut off about 1-½ inches from the tips of the feathers. This will prevent them from flying away when you feed and water them. Just keep these captives right next to the bait traps. Treat these caged sparrows as they we canaries. No single male House Sparrow will resist the urge to investigate these untaken females. Sooner, or later, the male will, if not by shear excitement, fall into one of the bait traps. There is no need to keeping more than three sparrows alive at a time for this strategy. Just keep them clean, watered and feed. Also, prevent them from getting wet. A wet sparrow dies quickly from hypothermia.

Nestbox traps come in many different forms. Some are trap doors that attach to a martin compartment or gourd. Others are just a trap birdhouse equipped with a trap door. And, then there are repeating nestbox traps that work like an elevator, delivering its passengers one at a time to a holding compartment. All three variations have a place in the "S & S War." Using combinations of these also will increase your catch ratio. In dealing with sparrows the entrance holes of these traps should be 1 ¼".

Set up any trap house near buildings, trees of over-growth. Sparrows like to use these areas for cover and find houses near this cover appealing. Remove any trapped sparrows immediately and rest the trap. It is not uncommon that its mate is waiting for it to leave the box. Once reset, it will go to investigate. Use any sparrow caught in this manor to supply decoys for your bait traps if needed.

Trap doors on house and gourds are vital to removing entrenched sparrows. Every year, there is one. or two. wily sparrows that will evade any strategy to remove them. These are important sparrows to remove since you want to eliminate them from passing on this trait. Nobody needs a more intelligent, wily House Sparrow.

Use trap doors on any unoccupied martin compartment. Place a small amount of nesting material in this trap compartment. If this does not get the bird, try gluing two white marbles to a small piece of cardboard and place it in one of the trap compartments. Entrenched sparrows are the ones that are going to destroy martin eggs and babies. The sight of the "fake" eggs gives him an added incentive to go into the trap and wreak their havoc.

Repeating nestbox traps are a little more involved. These traps look like a birdhouse, or nestbox. Inside, there is an elevator mechanism. A sparrow jumps into a seemingly suitable nesting cavity inside, only to find this cavity quickly shifts down to a waiting exit hole. The panicking bird races through the hole only to find itself trapped in a holding compartment. Meanwhile, the trap cavity moves back into the trapping position waiting for the next captive. These are good traps but there is only one available on the retail market The Cedar can be built for a fraction of the cost of this one. This type of trap is placed near a building or tree Valley Trap). Others to keep martins from being interested. For some unknown reason this trap is more effective on European Starlings than House Sparrows.

STARLING STRATEGIES

The starling is a little more difficult to control. These exotic birds are aggressive, large, strong, and adaptable. Being strong flyers they have the ability to travel long distances. They also are capable of limited migration. There is really no way of telling how effective trapping is on this species. Though many seem to notice decrease starling activity within one trapping season. Starlings breed only once a year so after a certain date they are not usually so competitive for martin nesting sites. Until that times starlings have the ability to kill martins and their eggs and young.

Nesting compartments, 6" x 6" have been the traditional way to keep starlings from nesting in martin housing. Although, the larger and heavier starlings require cavities larger than 6" x 6" to construct a nest and raise a brood, this does not keep starlings from skulking about martin houses. They will and do destroy martin nests and their contents for no other reason but to competitively seek their own site for nesting. Many studies document the starling influence as a negative factor in the decline of Purple Martins. Any landlord with a martin colony easily observes this.

Starling-resistant entrance holes (SREHs) are the newest weapon to keep starlings out of martin compartments. These holes come in three forms: oval or obround-shaped, crescent, or half- moon shaped, and the adjustable crescent shaped.

Once a martin compartment is enlarged beyond the traditional size of 6" x 6" starlings will move in with resolution and no reservation. Canadian landlord and PMS/NA member, Charles McEwen, designed the half-moon entrances to keep starlings from entering martin compartments. McEwen's' strategy thwarted starlings that tried his entrances because they were placed so low to the floor of the nesting cavity, so much so, that the starling could not bend down low enough to gain entrance.

Anatomically, Purple Martins are different and do not have the ability to crouch down much at all. Because their legs are short, in comparison to the starlings, they enter SREHs with little difficulty. But, more study needs to be done with these SREHs. In my opinion, the adjustable crescent holes are the most promising in my opinion. While these holes have worked miracles in many cases, in others, they seem ineffective. Like any living thing, starlings vary in sizes. While, it may not be clearly evident to human eyes, some starling bodies are just a tad smaller than other starlings. And, some, or all starlings exhibit great flexibility-enough so as to find a way to enter these tighter holes. It may be that there may be some size difference regionally in these birds.

Trapping starlings is no different from trapping House Sparrows. Nestbox traps and trap doors with 1 ¾ - 2 1/8 catch starlings as easily as sparrows. Bait traps like the well-known V-Trap (Australian Crow Trap), or the Z-Trap (trap designed by Dennis Zwerenz) are very effective during the fall and winter months, greatly reducing areas of local starling populations for a time. Repeating nestbox traps seem to work better for starlings than sparrows.

Great care must be taken when trapping starlings with nestbox traps. Responsible vigilance and monitoring during the time that Purple Martins and other native songbirds are present at the colony area is an absolute must. Both martins and starlings can use the same size holes if the holes are larger or are not starling-resistant. Once in a while, a martin can become trapped in a trap intended for a starling. Martins are not as sturdy as starlings and can quickly die from the stress of capture if left trapped for a short time.

Starlings are very wily, wary birds that exhibit much intelligence among their bird peers. It is very important to get a "troublemaker" the first time out. After a failed trapping attempt, starlings are quick witted and become very aware of human intentions. In order to delude their human conspirators, they may attempt to nest on the backsides of martin housing to avoid your detection. Quickly, they learn to recognize anything that has the potential to harm or threaten them. They will lurk in the shadows hidden from your view until you leave. They will even cease displaying in full view as not to attract your attention. Once, starlings master this type of behavior, it is nearly impossible to eliminate him.

Shooting starlings is typically not an option for anyone that lives in urbanized areas. But, for those that live in rural areas where it is more safe, and within local ordinances, a good pellet gun or .22 caliber rifle can eliminate elusive starlings and sparrows like no other method. For those people are familiar with guns, firearm rules and local ordinances, this may be a fast simple and easy solution. Landlords that do not live in areas that afford this option need to forget about it. The tragedy of harm and property damage will cause needless experience with lawyers and law enforcement. You will make no martin friends by defying laws and causing personal injuries.

European Starlings and House Sparrows are considered introduced, exotic bird pests by state and federal laws. European Starlings and House Sparrows enjoy "no" protection under the law. In many instances, wildlife organizations, agricultural groups classify these birds with the same status as rats and mice. Vermin! Poisoning and drownings are considered cruel forms of euthanizations, but outside of these two methods, the birds may be quickly dispatched by any method that is not considered to be cruel and inhumane. Whatever way a landlord chooses, please be ethical about it. Make it as quick and painless. I, myself, take no enjoyment in dispatching them. I do not like these pests. And, I hate them find it easier to do what must be done by intently disliking them. That does not mean I want to torture them.

Remember. It is vital to check all your traps on a daily basis-better, if traps are frequently checked. Sometimes, non-target species do find their way into these devices. They are not nearly as durable as the pests with which you wage war. If you cannot be sure of the type of bird, the best thing to do is to safely release it. It is better to release an unidentified bird then let it become a casualty of war.

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