Martin Bird

Martin bird, any of several swallows of the Hirundinidae family. The purple martin and its four tropical cousins are the biggest American swallows, at 20 cm (8 inches) long. The sand martin, also known as the bank swallow (Riparia riparia), is a brown and white bird that breeds in the Northern Hemisphere and nests in sandbanks. The blue-black above and white-rumped below house martin (Delichon urbica) is a common bird in Europe. The Congo River's African river martin (Pseudochelidon Eurystomina) is a blackbird with red eyes and a red bill that is often classified as a new family, Pseudochelidonidae. 

Purple Martin (Martin Bird)

The purple martin (Progne subis) is North America's biggest swallow.

Purple martins are not genuinely purple, despite their name. Their dark blackish-blue feathers have an iridescent sheen that gives them a brilliant blue to navy blue or deep purple look due to the refraction of incident light. They may even seem green under certain lighting.

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They have a breeding range that stretches from central Alberta to the eastern United States. Baja California, Arizona, and New Mexico are all home to subspecies. Purple martins are migratory birds that migrate from one location to another. During pre-breeding migration to North America and post-breeding migration to South America, the majority of birds spend a brief layover on the Yucatán Peninsula or Cuba. They're noted for their speed, agility, and unique flying style that combines quick flapping and glide. They will drop from the sky at enormous speeds with their wings tucked as they reach their nesting place.

Description about a Martin Bird

Purple martins are dimorphic in both sexes. The only swallow in North America with similar colours is the adult male, which is completely black with a shiny steel blue sheen. Adult females have a black top and paler underparts, with a steel blue sheen. Adults have a somewhat forked tail. Purple martins, both male and female, have delayed plumage development, which means it takes them two years to reach full adult plumage. Subadult females have a similar appearance to adult females, except a steel blue sheen and a browner back. Subadult males resemble females, but when they moult to adult plumage, solid black feathers appear on their breast in a blotchy, random pattern.

Carl Linnaeus first described this species as Hirundo Subis in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.

Procne, a mythical maiden who was transformed into a swallow to save her from her husband, is the current genus name. She had murdered their son in retaliation for her sister's rape. The Latin name is Subis refers to a bird that eats eagle eggs, and it may have been given to this species because of its aggressive behaviour toward birds of prey when breeding.

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The purple martin, grey-breasted martin, Caribbean martin, and southern martin are all considered superspecies in this genus.

Martin Bird Behaviour

Breeding

Males arrive at breeding grounds ahead of females and establish territories.

A territory might have multiple possible nesting places. Both the male and female investigate possible nest locations after forming a couple. The fact that artificial nest sites might be buildings with several rooms, grouped gourds, or single gourds complicates the process.

The nest is made up of three levels: the first serves as a foundation and is usually made up of twigs, mud, small pebbles, and in at least a few reported cases, small river mollusc shells the second level is made up of grasses and finer smaller twigs, and the third level is a small compression usually lined with fresh green leave.

Purple martins are known to get only one brood every year. The average clutch size per nest is four to six eggs. Incubation begins when the penultimate (second to last) egg is laid by females once a day.

The female is the main incubator, with some help from the male, during the 15–16-day incubation period.

Usually takes two to three days for the eggs to hatch. Fledging occurs between 26 and 32 days after hatch day when the young exit the nest. 

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Diet

Purple martins are insectivores, which means they feed largely by hawking, or collecting insects in the air while flying.

The birds are attacker who feeds on a variety of flying insects. They only come to the ground to consume insects on rare occasions. Mosquitoes, contrary to popular opinion, do not make up a substantial percentage of their diet. According to research released in 2015, the purple martin eats invasive fire ants (Solenopsis Invicta) and that they may make for a major amount of their diet. 

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Migration 

Purple martins spend the winter in Brazil, Bolivia, and portions of Peru before migrating to North America in the spring to reproduce. Spring migration is staggered, with arrivals in southern places such as Florida and Texas in January, but arrivals in the northern United States in April and Canada in May. The timing of arrival in the breeding grounds is generally directly proportional to the age of the animal. The older birds are said to arrive sooner on the breeding grounds in order to secure better nesting places. Older males are the first to migrate, leaving overwintering locations in late December or early January, followed by older females. 

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Younger birds (first yearlings) might take up to two months to reach the breeding grounds. Fall migration is also staggered, as birds migrate south after the mating season. Some birds go as early as July, while others remain until October. Martins move mostly by land, passing via Mexico and Central America. When not reproducing, martins congregate in big flocks and roost in vast numbers. This activity starts just before the southern migration and continues all through the wintering grounds.

Vocalization

Purple martins make a lot of noise.

They chirp, chortle, rattle, and croak, among other sounds.

Their cries are characterised as "throaty and rich." A gurgling and guttural wooing song, a dawn song, and even a subsong are all utilised by the males near the conclusion of the mating season. Purple martin song cassettes are offered to attract martins to freshly built birdhouses. 

Nesting Behaviour 

In the spring, males are the first to return to nesting grounds and establish nesting territories.

Usually nests in colonies, especially in the east, where practically all of the birds are housed in inter nest boxes. Western martins may build their nests in looser colonies or pairs. Males may have more than one partner at a time. Natural nesting locations are cavities in trees, typically old woodpecker holes (or in giant cactus in the southwest). Most martins in the east now use nest boxes. Nests in holes in buildings or cliffs on occasion. Both sexes build the nest, which is a cup made of leaves, grass, twigs, trash, and typically mud. The front of the nest may have a raised soil ring to protect the eggs from rolling out.

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Fun Facts of Bird

1. The use of Martin, a well-known boy's name, reflects our strong contact with this bird like a martin. The complete name, house martin, dates back barely a few centuries.

2. Few birds are more friendly than this one, in several areas breeding colonies of several hundred birds have been recorded.

3. They are one of Europe's most widespread birds, with populations ranging from the Mediterranean to the arctic. In Iceland, they are a rare breeder.

4. Even if both survive a single mating season, it is unusual for the same pair to join up again the following year.

5. Purple martins feed mostly between 160 and 500 feet in the air. Although the birds may consume up to 2,000 insects a day, mosquitoes only make up a minor part of their daily diet due to their height. They could eat that many, but mosquitoes are rarely seen in such great quantities at a purple martin's feeding height.

6. Purple martins, especially in eastern populations, are social, colonial birds. Hundreds of pairs of birds may create nesting colonies, and tens of thousands of birds may roost in roosting colonies later in the season. At one point, the world's largest roosting colony was estimated to include around 700,000 birds.

7. Purple martins and humans have had a symbiotic relationship for generations. Native Americans used to hang gourds for the birds to nest in, to encourage them to their land and keep insects away from their crops. Eastern purple martin colonies are now almost entirely reliant on human-supplied housing, whereas western populations still use natural cavities such as tree snags or abandoned woodpecker holes to feed their offspring.

8. The longest recorded lifespan of a martin bird was over 13 years.

9. Purple martins can reach speeds of over 40 miles per hour in flight. They're also excellent in-flight hunters that can do intricate aerial dances while pursuing prey.

10. These birds are not purple, despite their colourful name. Their plumage is a beautiful, iridescent dark blue-black colour. Their colour can appear royal blue, navy blue, deep purple, or even green depending on the light and distance.

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Relationship with Humans

Purple martins are synanthropic, which means they have formed a bond with people over time and benefit from being close to them.

The eastern species has transitioned from breeding in the wild to dependent on human-provided nesting places after years of generational imprinting and nesting. Although starting a colony might be challenging, once established, the colony will survive as long as nesting grounds are available. Martins have a high "site persistence" and will often return to the same nest place year after year if they are successful in producing a brood.

They built them so that adult birds could establish nests and then feed their young thousands of insects that would otherwise devour their crops. Chickasaws and Choctaws were seen hanging gourds for martins on stripped saplings near their homes in 1808, as did African Americans walking down the Mississippi with long canes.

Conclusion 

Purple martins are insectivores, which means they feed largely by hawking, or collecting insects in the air. Purple martins spend the winter in Brazil, Bolivia, and portions of Peru before migrating to North America in the spring to reproduce. Males arrive at breeding grounds ahead of females and establish territories. The average clutch size per nest is four to six eggs, with females incubating once a day. The male incubator is the main incubator, with some help from the male, during the 15–16-day incubation period.

Their plumage is a beautiful, iridescent dark blue-black colour. At one point, the world's largest roosting colony was estimated to include around 700,000 birds. Purple martins can reach speeds of over 40 miles per hour in flight. Their colour can appear royal blue, navy blue, deep purple, or even green depending on the light and distance and distance they travel. Chickasaws and Choctaws hung gourds for martins on stripped saplings near their homes in 1808.

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Cadycross has two main categories you can play with: Adventure and packs. On this page we have the solution or answer for: Bird like a martin, Forked tail, Lucky in Korea. This clue or question is found on puzzles.