Purple Martins are heading back to Brazil. See them before they go at Houston watch parties
Gary Clark, Correspondent
Aug. 11, 2023
 1of4Thousands of purple martins are "staging" or gathering in area shopping center trees at sunset. Photo Credit: Kathy Adams Clark. Restricted use.KATHY ADAMS CLARK/Kathy Adams Clark/KAC Productions Show More 
Purple martins are going to Brazil for the winter. They make a stopover in Houston before continuing their long flight south.
Back in January, the sleek-bodied, blue-black birds began arriving in our locale and across eastern North America to search out nesting locations in human-made purple martin houses. They subsequently bred and raised young during spring and early summer but are currently congregating with local martins at shopping centers around town before the arduous flight to Brazil.
During eventide, huge flocks will appear like black billows of smoke over the horizon at Willowbrook Mall near Tomball and the Fountains shopping center in Stafford. They’ll funnel down to trees lining the shopping center parking lots just before nightfall.
It’s a jaw-dropping sight. I’ve seen crowds of people gathered at shopping mall parking lots while chatting, laughing and joking, only to look up in stunned silence as great masses of martins funneled down from the sky and into the trees. Then martins began their own clamorous chatter.
Trees around shopping centers provide roosting sites where martins huddle tightly together, making it difficult for predators like owls to pick off individual members of the group. It’s safety within a close-knit community, and purple martins are the quintessentially communal birds.
Yet there’s another benefit to martins roosting around shopping centers. The parking lot lights attract hordes of insects, providing a ready breakfast for the birds at daybreak.
Purple Martin watch parties
What: Houston Audubon’s purple martin watch parties, presented by CenterPoint Energy.
Where: Fountains Shopping Center in Stafford at Fountain Lake Drive behind the shopping center; Willowbrook Plaza, 17395 Tomball Parkway; and in the parking lot on the south corner of Gessner and Texas 249
When: Aug. 26, Sept. 3 and Sept. 17. Be there no later than 7:30 p.m.
Supplies: Bring water, lawn chairs, umbrellas, binoculars and cameras. No loud music.
Admission: Free
Details: Get more information and daily updates at houstonaudubon.org/programs/all-age-groups/purple-martins.html
They’ll then fan out across the whole of Houston and surrounding areas to chomp down massive numbers of flying insects that are overwhelmingly abundant in August and September. If nothing else, we should thank the martins for congregating here to gobble up insects.
By day, martins will devour flying insects to build up body fat reserves needed to fuel their long and perilous journey southward. They’ll first fly across the Gulf of Mexico to the Yucatán Peninsula, where they may spend a couple of weeks before continuing their journey.
They’ll then fly across Central America into South America and on to Brazil near San Palo Province. That’s roughly a 2,000-mile flight for the 8-inch-long birds weighing about 2 ounces and flying on 16-inch wingspans.
A sad note: Purple martin populations are declining. Studies show the cause is high levels of mercury accumulated in their bodies on Brazilian wintering grounds, and mercury decreases their ability to store fat needed for migration.
Purple Martins are heading back to Brazil. See them before they go at (houstonchronicle.com) |
