Purple Martins Have Returned!

First continent of Purple Martins (photo taken a few minutes ago)

They're back!

My annual visitors, the Purple Martins have returned.  Spring is officially here!

The spring of 2007 was the first year we put up our Purple Martin house.  Every year since then we have had these spring harbingers take up residence.  Summer just isn't summer without their cacophonous symphony of building their nests in the six apartments of their aluminum avian condo.

Bill complains ever year about their noise and their dive bomb deposits on our driveway but I welcome these midnight blue birds with their iridescent plumage.

This morning I tore out yet another house sparrow nest in one of the apartments.  Every year I have that battle with the house sparrows.  I have other bird boxes for them but for some reason they prefer the bluebird house and the Purple Martin house.  The house sparrows are bullies and very aggressive.  This is one place where they don't have their way.  I like all birds but when I protect the native species of birds before the invasive species, which is what the house sparrows  are.  Earlier Starlings were checking out the Purple Martin house like they do every year but they couldn't fit into the opening to the Purple Martin house.  They went elsewhere.

The house sparrows and the Starlings remind me of Republicans.  Ooops, did I let a little politics slip in?  I have a very progressive backyard habitat.  No lying Repugs in my backyard.

Bill not happy with the return of the Purple Martins

Returning to the Scene of the Crime

Bluebird eggs at risk yesterday with the arrival of the Demon Kid

Remember a few weeks ago that I posted that someone had torn out the swallow bird nest (with live baby swallows in it) when Bill and I were on vacation down South?  I did a little sleuthing and came to the conclusion that it was the eight year old Hispanic boy who was with the lawn maintenance guy that my neighbor Tom had doing his lawn.

My neighbor Tom's Hispanic lawn maintenance crew yesterday arrives

Bill had pointed out to me before "how cute" the kid was with his hyperactive antics whenever he accompanied his dad (?) to his lawn maintenance job.  Thus, it didn't take too much to figure out who opened the bluebird box that contained the live baby swallows.  It had to take someone about three feet tall to reach up and put his greasy little finger in the open and pull the wooden door down because the latch was still in place.  At first I couldn't figure out how the door got open with the latch still in place.  I thought maybe a cat or another animal got into the bird box.  But to have the strength to pull the latch?  No, couldn't be.

After running different scenarios through my mind, this hyper active kid popped to the front.  Yes, this would be something that a curious, hyperactive, unsupervised, eight year old brat would do.  I went back out to the bird box to look for evidence.  Almost immediately I saw a small indentation in the thyme that I have planted at the base of the bird box.  In fact, right at the very base is a wild rose bush.  The indentation was to the left.  Viola!  That's why he put his finger up to hook it into the hole that is the opening to the bird box.  Once he opened the bird box he was too short to see into the nest so he obviously put his stinking, dirty, greasy little paw up to the nest and pulled it out.  He was probably very pleased to find four naked, three day old baby swallows in the nest.  His short attention span was satiated if only for a moment.

When Bill and I discovered the bird box door was open the next morning after we returned from our trip, I immediately went out to see what happened.  I saw the empty nest on the ground.  No baby swallows.  No adult swallows.  Gone.

Not knowing what else to to, I put the neatly built nest (which was cushioned by many down feathers from unknown birds) back in the bird box, hoping the adult swallows return and lay more eggs.  The determined sparrows do it so why not the swallows?  Well, it was not to be.

The bird box remained empty for two week until a week ago when the blue birds returned. Hallelujah!  This was great news!  The blue birds had returned.  For the past two years the blue birds have raised two batches of baby bluebirds in that box.  This year, right on cue in early April the blue birds returned only to be met by a very determined sparrow.  The determined sparrow had already killed a swallow in that bird box plus in another bird box.  I guess the blue birds assumed it was too dangerous to build a nest in that bird box this year.  They left and the swallows took over.  Oh, Bill took care of the determined sparrow.  He trapped it and "disposed" of it.  One less sparrow in the world, hooray!

We figured if we couldn't have the bluebirds raising their young in that bird box this year, at least the swallows would have a chance.  That is until the ADHD monster arrived on the scene.

I told Bill "He'll be back."  Bill said, "No, I think that was a one time job Tom (our neighbor) had done."  I disagreed.  I said to Bill, "Oh no, that little destructive monster will be back."  And sure enough, yesterday the little hyperactive brat was back.  However, this time he was staying in the truck.

A ha!  Either his dad knew what he did or this ADHD kid caused trouble at some of his other job locations.  I wanted to go out immediately and have words with Miguel (or whatever his name is.)  Manual, Poncho, Pedro....whatever.  Probably Jesus pronounced "Hey Zeus!"

Bill said don't do anything unless he gets out of the truck.  I agreed with Bill.  I went to our second floor and kept an eagle eye on that truck.  Occasionally I would see The Brat popping out of the driver's window.  One time he was almost all the way out.  This kid has so much energy, he could hardly contained himself.  I figured now was the time to go out and have a discussion with his dad Jorge (pronounced Whore Hey!) or whatever his name is (Juan, Carolos, Fernando or Pablo - take your pick.)

As I was walking towards dad Jose (pronounced Hose Hey!) on his tractor, he stopped immediately and looked at me with dread.  He knew this was trouble.  The kid pokes his stupid little head out the driver's side of dad's truck, a HUGE smile on his face.  This kid is ready to do Major Destruction.  I say "Ola", which I think is a standard form of Hispanic greeting.  But then my Spanish fails me.  I know a few words like "Amigo", and "Gracias" but none of those words will apply to this situation.  I figure the best thing to do is speak very slowly in English (or as they say "Inglis") and do a lot of motioning with my hands.

The Little Terror has the driver's side door open, ready to pop out and cause mayhem

I got his attention.  Pointing to his brat in the truck I say "Someone opened that bird box (I point to the bird box) and took out the nest."  Pointing to his monster, I say "I have reason to believe that it was him!"  I continue (motioning my arms wildly hoping this would make him understand I am really pissed), "No! No! No!"  And pointing to destructive little monster that he has in the truck, I say "An this isn't funny!" (like he understood me.  Made me feel good to say it.)

I motioned again to the bird box and say as loud as I can "NO!"  I think I got through.  In fact, the look on Hector's face (or whatever his name is), led me to believe that he thought I was going to deport him.  I am certain he is an illegal.  He just had that look of utter terror when I approached him.

Once back in our house I continued to monitor the situation.  The Devil's Spawn kept popping in and out of the driver's side window.  Then about a half an hour later went to the door and said something to the kid and opened the door.  Damien sprung out and ran to the side of the house.  Obviously a bathroom call.  After pissing on the side of my neighbor Tom's house he ran right back to the truck and hopped into the cab just like his father Alejandro (pronounced "Alley Hand Dro") told him to do.

Note the Devil's Spawn running towards the tree to take a pee

After his dad finished the lawn mowing (along with another illegal who collected the grass and it in another truck), he opened the door of his truck to let his kid out.  Immediately ADHD kid was doing cartwheels on my neighbor's lawn.  Damn, this kid has about as much energy as that BP induced oil volcano in the Gulf of Mexico.  GET HIM OUT OF HERE!

They left around 5 o'clock.  I could finally take my afternoon nap, secure in the knowledge that a destructive, wild child wasn't going to destroy another bird nest.

The Illegals with their Monster Brat getting out of Dodge

This morning I went out to check the blue bird house and found that another egg has been added.  This make one more to go.  Bluebirds usually lay four eggs.  They take about a week to hatch and about four weeks for the bluebirds to grow into maturity.  During that time I am positive that Pedro, Diego or (oh no, this couldn't be his name "Angel" and Pancho will return.  When they do I will be ready for them.
I'm calling Immigration this time.

The bluebird nest today, a third egg.  Safe...for the time being.

Bird Rescue

About an hour ago while I was doing some yard work out back I noticed that the Purple Martin house was very quiet. That usually indicates a problem. I looked up and saw the Taliban House Sparrow barrel out of one of the gourds. He’s back. I went over and pulled down the Purple Martin house (as I have done many times this spring) and checked all the apartments. All apartments had either baby Purple Martins, eggs, and one had Mom sitting on her eggs (she wasn’t disturbed by me.)

In one of the apartments one egg was in the forefront. I felt it and it was cold. The nest in the back held four warm eggs. I took the cold egg out. I don’t know how it got to the front of the apartment but it obviously was abandoned.

I checked both gourds. One held a neat nest which was obviously the former swallow nest. The other gourd was stuffed with just about every kind of weed and trash that you can imagine. That’s a Taliban Sparrow nest. I checked it for eggs. None were there…..yet. I left the nest. I’ll wait until Taliban lays its eggs then I’ll get rid of the whole thing. That seems to be the only way to keep this varmint under control and out of my bird boxes and birdhouses.

As I was raising the Purple Martin house, I noticed a broken egg at my feet. Then I noticed a live, naked baby Purple Martin on the ground. I have no idea how it got there. Maybe it was one of those eggs hatched near the entrance to one of the apartments. A week ago I noticed there were two eggs at the front of one of the apartments but I left them there. Thank goodness I didn’t step on this defenseless baby Purple Martin. It surely would have died if left on the ground. The poor thing didn’t even have its eyes opened yet.

I gently lifted it up and put it in the nest with the other naked baby Purple Martins. I’m not sure if it belonged in that nest. If not, I hope that the mama Purple Martin doesn’t mind an extra mouth to feed.

I didn’t think to take a picture because I was anxious to get the baby Purple Martin back into the safety of a nest. Actually, I wouldn’t want to post a picture anyway of the poor thing lying on the ground. I did take some pictures of the activity around the Purple Martin house after my rescue, one of which I posted on this blog.

Whenever I rescue one of nature’s critters in harm’s way, I feel a complete sense of fulfillment. There were a lot of other things that happened today, some good, some bad. But the day ended well. My day is complete.

Ready to Pop

Those baby bluebirds, how fast they grow. They are ready to pop out of that blue bird house. Maybe today or tomorrow. I hope it's a sunny day when they make their grand entry into the world.

Yesterday I cleaned out two more house sparrow nests out of the Purple Martin house. I think that should do it. I haven't seen the sparrows rebuilding their nest. Maybe they got the message, build somewhere else.

Right after I took this baby bluebird photo this morning, I noticed the sparrow watching me from the perch on top of the bluebird house. Obviously trying to throw a guilt trip on me. Won't work buddy. You're outta here.

Good Morning Sunshine

What do we have here? Why it looks like the dominant member of the baby bluebird Batch of Five. A short while ago I went out to the bluebird box to take my latest progress picture of the first batch of bluebirds this year and this is what greeted me. Apparently, Skeeziks here figured out this is where the food come in and he (she) is going to be first in line. I dare not open the bluebird box lest this one falls out. Mama bluebird was nearby keeping observing. I think she knows that I am not a threat to her babies.

The Purple Martins are doing fine in their house. The one lower apartment that I had such a devil of a time getting rid of the sparrows is now occupied by a Purple Martin family. Last week when I threw out the sparrow nest; eggs and all. That did the trick. The sparrows have been coming back with decreasing frequency looking in the other apartments for its eggs but no go. This afternoon I checked an apartment on the front of Purple Martin house. I haven't seen any Purple Martin activity up there. I pulled down the birdhouse and checked the apartment. Sure enough it was stuffed to the ceiling with straw, weeds, trash and whatever else the sparrow could find. Out it went. And for good measure I checked the other hanging gourd. Yep. Another sparrow nest. That one went out too. No eggs in either one. They're building new nests as I type this. I'll wait until they lay their eggs then I'll take the whole shebang out. We can fight this battle all summer but there is no way any house sparrow is going to raise their young in any of my birdhouses. Tain't happening.

Today was/is a beautiful sunny day for a change. Rain is forecast for this weekend though. I just returned from Peppers, a local nursery, with geraniums for my container pots. My neighbor put out a beautiful geranium planter this morning. I cannot let that go unchallenged. Yes, we do the lawn thing and we have a friendly competition in container planting. I love living in a neighborhood like this where we can enjoy one another's efforts instead of battling the deer like I did at my home in Pennsylvania.

The waters of unrest continue to roil at work. I can't go into much detail on this blog but I did want to make the point that all is not well at work. Things should come to a head this week. I hope I can continue to work there because I love my job and the people I work with. I'm good at what I do but sometimes that's not enough when other factors come into play to sap one's enthusiasm about going to work. My rule has always been if I dread going to work, then I'm in the wrong job. I hope things work out at work but if not, then that is the way it was meant to be. Life will go on. I have a comfortable and lovely home. I have more than enough to do around here to keep me busy. Of course I wouldn't be making as many trips to Peppers.

Now I'm off to go outside and enjoy some of this late afternoon sun. This is my favorite time of day in the summer. Just me, one with nature. No worries about living up to someone else's unrealistic expectations. This is the way I live my life at this moment in time.

House Sparrow Attack

Today I get serious about the attack of house sparrows that I have on my bluebird boxes and Purple Martin house. Again, this morning I tore out a house sparrow nest in my Purple Martin house. That house sparrow is rebuilding that nest as I type this. One of the bluebird boxes has two house sparrow eggs in it. I was going to toss the nest out with the eggs but thought there might be a better way. I checked the Internet and found out there is several ways to deal with a house sparrow infestation. Some good and effective and some not so good nor effective.

I have already found one bluebird egg pierced and destroyed. The bluebirds have since laid five more eggs and they are guarded by the biggest bluebird I've ever seen. Last year three Purple Martin nestlings were pecked to death by the house sparrows trying to take over their nest. This year three of the apartments have Purple Martins in it but I haven't checked to see what their status is. I'm trying not to disturb them. I also have a gourd that swallows are nesting in.

I checked all the methods for controlling an infestation of house sparrows and the best one seems to be oiling the eggs, thus preventing air from getting to the embryo. Other options are freezing the eggs and putting them back in the nest. Piercing the eggs but you have to be careful to pierce the egg thoroughly or else you'll have the birth of a deformed sparrow. I don't want to cause any more harm than necessary. What I do want to do is provide a safe and secure environment for my native nesting birds to have a place to raise their young.

Tearing out the nests and eggs apparently doesn't stop the house sparrow from building another nest. The best thing to to is to keep the little buggers occupied with their eggs. Thus oiling the eggs seems to be the best option at this time.

I've posted a picture of what an aggressive house sparrow does to a bluebird when they want their nesting site. It is not a pretty picture. As much as I hate to destroy a bird nesting site, it is necessary if we are to maintain at least some of our native bird species such as the bluebird and Purple Martin.

Of Bluebirds, Purple Martins and House Sparrows

My battle continues with the house sparrows that continue to build their nests in the lower levels of my purple martin house. I've been tearing out all three nests every morning. As soon as I tear them out the house sparrows go back to building their nests. On the upper level there is one Purple Martin nest with eggs. I wish the Purple Martins were more aggressive in chasing away the house sparrows but that's not happening. This year one of the gourds has swallows nesting in it. There is a nest in the other gourd but I'm not sure which bird is nesting there. I suspect it is another house sparrow nest.

Tomorrow I'll go into a different mode in battling the house sparrows. I'll wait until they lay their brown speckled eggs then I'll throw the nest out, eggs and all. That's what happened last year when the birdman who put up my Purple Martin house discovered one of the bluebird houses had a nest of house sparrows. He threw the nest out, eggs and all. At first I was shocked when he did this, but now I understand why he destroyed the house sparrow nest. House sparrows, or English sparrows are a non-native species of bird who have taken over nesting location of native species. Along with the starling, another non native species of bird, many of the natural nesting locations of birds like bluebirds and purple martins have disappeared. I can't control the North American continent but I can control my back acre of yard. There will be no house sparrows (or starlings) nesting in my back yard.

I have three bluebird houses in my back yard but only one is occupied. It is the same bluebird house that was occupied last year that produced three batches of bluebirds. They came back this year and successfully fought off the house sparrows to reclaim their box. Maybe part of the reason they were so successful was one of the bluebirds is a big bird. It looks almost as big as a robin. So far that big bluebird has fought off all attempts to take over his bluebird box. Good for him.

The house sparrows remind me of uninvited guests who are determined to have their way, regardless of who they are putting out. They remind me of people who have horse blinders on and can only see their way, regardless of the damage they cause. Ironically I know people like this and they say they're just "focused." That's one way of looking at it. Of course they are wrong. It is just an excuse for not thinking. The sparrow doesn't think. It just does. I guess that's why they've been so successful in replacing many of our native species of birds. Well, I wish them the best wherever they decide to make their nest. One thing is for sure, it isn't going to be in my backyard. Buh bye!

Hot Monday

Another hot day today. This was one of those rare Mondays I didn't have to work at the hotel. First thing I did this morning was clean out the three sparrow nests in my Purple Martin house. I've been doing this for the past week, daily. Purple Martins are occupying the top three apartment of the six apartment birdhouse but the English Sparrow insists on building nests in the lower three apartments. That's not going to happen. First thing in the morning I tear out the nests. I don't want to have to wait until they lay eggs then tear out their nests but if that is what is necessary, I'll have to do that. The man who put up my Purple Martin house last year did just that. He threw the nest, eggs and all, in the adjoining corn field. The pesky sparrows didn't come back. They got the message....go somewhere else.

I have three blue bird houses. Two have sparrow nests in them which I haven't bothered. They apparently aren't bothering with them either, preferring the Purple Martin house. The third blue bird house is occupied by blue birds as it was last year. There are five perfect blue eggs in their neat nest as I type this blog. Earlier, there was one egg (they lay one a day) but it was taken out by someone and tossed to the ground, punctured. I suspect it was one of the aggressive house sparrows. Fortunately, the blue birds have fought off the sparrows and have been able to lay their five eggs. This same blue bird house last year saw two batches of bluebirds raised. We're off to a good start this year already. I will keep the readers of this blog posted on the progress of the blue birds.

This morning I made my first plant trip to Peppers, a nearby local nursery. This is my favorite time of year, deciding what plants to buy and planting them. At one time when I was much younger I thought I would like to have a house with an in ground swimming pool. How foolish I was. I enjoy nothing better in my doddering old age than fussing around with my raised flowerbeds. It is my favorite past time, maybe even exceeding blogging.

This morning I purchased Roma tomato plants, impatients, sweet alyssum, sage, basil, and lavender plants. This is just the start of my planting season. Most of my perennials have come back from last year. I'm especially pleased with my Knock Out Rose bushes. I'm not sure about my Pampas grass. They're not looking "too pure" (as my Mother always used to say of plants that didn't look like they were going to come back.) I may have to replace them this year. I love the gracefulness of a full Pampas plant but they are a pain to cut back in the spring.

I received more comments on my blogs about my Census address canvasser job. Apparently I'm not the only one who had problems with the lack of training and high pressure of the job. Maybe I'm not the "lazy whiner" after all as one person called me after he/she posted a comment on my blog. Address canvassing for the census is a very hard job and I have all the respect in the world for those who are doing the job but it just wasn't for me. Not enough training, unreliable equipment, too many threats from the area manager, and I just didn't like tramping around strange people's front yards.

This evening was very pleasant. I met two friends in Rehoboth Beach for Mumbo Jumbo night at the Purple Parrot restaurant. Gone was the "Thundering Herd" as my friend Wayne calls them. The "Thundering Herd" are the weekend tourists of descend on Rehoboth Beach and the surrounding beach environs for a weekend of fun in the sun and a posing on the boardwalk. I shouldn't complain about them, they are the bread and butter of we the permanent year round residents. Unless you're into raising chickens in Sussex County, tourism is the only industry east of Route 1 in good old Lower Slower (aka Sussex County, Delaware.) We appreciate them and the money they leave behind but it is nice to travel roads not clogged with belching SUV's loaded down with bicycles, dashboards providing support for flip flopped feet, and dodging their aggressive driving. There is one sign as you enter Rehoboth Beach that says "Slow down, you are at the beach now" (or something like that.) These people need to relax. The ocean isn't going anywhere. They will get a parking spot. They're cool and they know it and they can't wait to show everyone else how cool they are, sauntering down Rehoboth Avenue with their oh so world weary attitudes.

Mumbo Jumbo Night at the Purple Parrot is a pound of char-grilled hamburger for $6.75 with all the fixins. The Purple Parrot is only one of two places that I know of in the Rehoboth Beach/Lewes area that cooks hamburger that tastes like hamburger. All of the other restaurants I've eaten in serve up the frozen, tasteless, overpriced, greasy beef patty delivered by the constant stream of Sysco trucks headed south on Route 1. If you want a good hamburger the only two places I know of are either the Purple Parrot in Rehoboth Beach or Gilligan's Restaurant in Lewes. Don't waste your money or time ordering a hamburger at any of the other restaurants unless you like grease burgers with no taste.

Yes, it was a good day today. Starting with my plants and ending with an enjoyable evening with friends. Nobody telling me what to do, nobody trying to save my soul, nobody putting guilt trips on me. That's one of the reasons why I moved to Delaware, to get away from all those toxic relationships. And I'm doing just fine.

The Day After Part Two

Included are additional pictures I took this morning of the aftermath of tearing out the sparrows' nesting from my Purple Martin birdhouse. I tried to include it in my previous blog but apparently there is a problem with including a video and pictures in the same blog. The first picture is of the now empty Purple Martin birdhouse with the sparrow nesting at the base. The second picture shows the sparrow pair perched below the Purple Martin birdhouse after I tore their nesting out. The last picture shows their nesting, including one egg, at the base of the Purple Martin birdhouse. While this may seem like harsh measures to some who read this blog, it is not near as harsh as dead Purple Martin nestlings that had holes punched in their heads by these same sparrows. Sparrows are very resourceful. This is a wide open area here in coastal Delaware with many nooks and crevices for sparrows to make their nests. I don't how how long it will take the sparrows to understand that their choice of nesting will not work in this particular Purple Martin birdhouse. I've been told they are programmed to do what they do. Unfortunately they are a non-native species of bird that was introduced to this continent many years ago. Their introduction to the native bird species of this country has had devastating consequences for the native bird population. I may not be able to control this disaster but I can affect change in my own backyard habitat. In my area of southern Delaware, millions of chickens are hauled away daily to their doom. I feel for each and every chicken. I don't feel sorry for these sparrows who have to look for another home. Besides, the Purple Martins catch a lot more mosquitoes than the sparrows. Since I've had the Purple Martin birdhouse up (and also my adjoining neighbor), I have not had the mosquito problem I've had in previous years. I doubt that the sparrows are responsibile for the elimination of my mosquito problem. I think it is perhaps the Purple Martins who deserve credit. To show my thanks, I will continue to provide a sparrow free home for them.

The Day After

First thing I checked when I was up this morning was to look out my bedroom window to see the Purple Martin house. One of the doors to one of the PM apartments was off. Uh oh. Was it an Attack of the Furious Determined Sparrow? That PM apartment held baby PMs yesterday. I quickly dressed and walked through the wet grass to lower the PM birdhouse. No birds were in that apartment. I checked the other apartments. There were no birds in any of the other apartments. One of the apartments, that had baby PMs yesterday, only had some wet black feather remnants of its previous occupants. Then I discovered sparrow nesting in a different apartment. Ah ha. The Determined Sparrows finally got the message not to build their nest in the bottom front. Contrary to what some readers of this blog have told me, I think the message finally sunk in to their little pea brain not to build a nest in that apartment. However, they built it in another apartment. I tore it out. I put the nesting, along with one brown speckled sparrow egg, at the base of the PM birdhouse along with the previous nesting I tore out yesterday. There were no Purple Martins to be seen this morning. However, once I tore the sparrow nesting out, several Purple Martins returned. A short video is included which shows the sparrow couple perched on the roof of my house,chirping in my direction as if to question me as to why I keep tearing out their nesting. By the time this whole process is done, I may have enough straw to make a bale of hay. I'll save that and use it for my Halloween decorations.

House Sparrows Evicted

A new development with the Determined Sparrows. I have to look at this situation again.


Read this.

This morning, like every morning, when I got up I pulled the curtains back from one of my bedroom windows to see how the birds are doing in my backyard habitat. Immediately I saw that the Purple Martins were in distress. After dressing, shaving, and having breakfast I went out to my shed to get my gloves. I was going to lower the Purple Martin birdhouse and check out what was going on with the six apartments. As I approached the PM birdhouse, the male/female pair of Determined Sparrows darted out off of their perch at the base of the PM birdhouse. They act like they own the whole PM birdhouse and the Purple Martins are visitors at their pleasure. The Purple Martins dispersed as I lowered their birdhouse. The first three apartments I checked on the front contained baby Purple Martins in two of them. The third apartment was empty. Those must have been the new baby Purple Martins that have been testing their wings by soaring around their birdhouse the past week. I checked the back apartments. The Determined Sparrows have their nest in the bottom apartment. The top right apartment was still empty. This was the same apartment where I found two dead baby Purple Martins. The top apartment on the left had baby Purple Martins in the back. There were very quiet. Perhaps fearing the Determined Sparrows. I feel so bad for these birds. They have so much to fear where they should have no fear. Then I checked the bottom apartment. As I thought, it was crammed full of twigs, straw and bits of plastic trash. A typical house sparrow bird nest. I tore it all out and threw it in the cornfield near next to my backyard. As I threw our their nesting material I saw three house sparrow brown speckled eggs. I didn't care. Good riddance. I returned to the PM birdhouse and raised it up to it's previous height. The Purple Martins returned, much quieter than before. The Determined house sparrows also returned. Of course they checked their apartment first and, seeing no nesting material in it, flitted out on the perch and looked my way. The rest of the Purple Martins returned, this time much calmer. The Determined Sparrows continued to flit back and forth between their perch near the opening of their nest and my neighbor's tree. I guess they were looking for their nest. I went to the edge of my property and picked up what was left of their nest and placed it at the bottom of the Purple Martin birdhouse. Then I left. Later, as I was getting ready to meet friends in Lewes for lunch, I saw the pair of house sparrows checking out their nesting material at the bottom of the PM birdhouse. I also saw one of the sparrows exiting one of the Purple Martin apartments. They were probably checking for their eggs. I hope they're not going to kill any more of the Purple Martins babies that are nesting in their birdhouse. I realize that some who read this blog feel that I should provide space for the house sparrows but I have decided that I will not. There is plenty of space in other locations for them to build a bird nest. I will not permit them to build any more of their trashy bird nests in my birdhouses. To me, the house sparrows are like the neighborhood bully. They bully their way in and take what they want. I have had comments from other readers of my blog which encourage me to be a "good landlord" and get rid of these house sparrows, which are an invasive species. I'm coming to the point where I agree with these readers. I don't want to destroy them but if that is what is necessary, I may have to do that. Now I see why my Father kept a bee bee gun next to his cornfield. I remember all the times I used to chastise him for (what I perceived) was his cruelty towards the sparrows and starlings, now I see what he was trying to do. He was protecting the bluebird trail of bird boxes that surrounded his 2 acres of garden from the sparrows and starlings. He was successful. Eventually, the house sparrows figured out that it was useless to continue to try and build nests in his bluebird houses. I don't know how long it took him to convince them of that fact, but he did. I don't like to destroy any living thing but just as I am destroying the devastating onslaught of Japanese beetles that I have now, I will get rid of the house sparrows. Hopefully, but tearing out their nest enough times they will get the message.