Return of the Purple Martin

The return of North America's largest swallow, the purple martin has begun. Sightings have been reported in Florida and Louisiana. Over the last 12 years that I've had a colony, their average return date here is around the second or third week of February. My 32 Supergourds are up and ready, but I'll keep them plugged until I begin seeing them in the area, otherwise their two main nest site competitors, the European starling and the English sparrow, would try to move in. If you have any experience with a martin colony you know how much a pain in the *** these two birds can be so it's best to keep them in check by any means. As the season progresses I hope to post any and all things interesting that I come across. Hopefully this season will be one of many new fledglings.

A Doe and Her Fawn

About 50 yards from my front porch I watched a doe and her fawn slowly creep from the wooded area that borders our camp and feed cautiously in the hayfield. Every so often the fawn would hop as if to play. They walked slowly and ever so often the doe would look my direction, keeping a close eye on me, lifting her flag at times causing the fawn to freeze. Normally the mother feeds alone and leaves her fawn well hidden in thick vegetation. The fawn will lay in the "camoflauge position" with its legs tucked and its body stretched out with its head and neck laid flat on the ground blending in with the leaf litter. The mother will return at intervals to nurse it. I guess as they get older they will accompany their mothers to feed. Fawns are usually weaned at about six weeks, but this one apparently wasn't as it ran up to the mother and began nursing. Click on photo to enlarge.