Impacts of purple martin landlord stewardship activities on nest box occupancy

Abstract

AbstractThe eastern subspecies of purple martins (Progne subis; hereafter martins) nests almost exclusively in human‐made cavity nest boxes. Martin landlords manage nest boxes with varying levels of engagement and methods, but little research has evaluated the effectiveness of management on martin occupancy. In the fall of 2019, based on interviews with 31 martin landlords in Camrose, Alberta, Canada, we compared martin occupancy in nest boxes during 3 years with 8 management practices. Nest boxes whose landlords cleaned nests, removed blowfly larvae, frequently checked nests, removed competitor nests, and added nest material had higher martin occupancy rates than nest boxes without stewardship practices. Our results help affirm and prioritize future martin landlord practices.