Menunkatuck Uses Solar-powered Sound Systems to Attract Purple Martins, Chimney Swifts

Menunkatuck Audubon Society installed a solar-powered sound system at the Guilford Salt Meadows Sanctuary to attract purple martins to establish a new colony. A second system was installed at Hammonasset Beach State Park to attract chimney swifts to nest in the artificial chimney at the shorebird pool bird blind.

At the Sanctuary the purple martin house has had fly-over martins every spring, but none have nested. Again, there have been fly-overs of chimney swifts, but no nesting.

Solar-powered sound system at the Guilford Salt Meadows Sanctuary.

According to the Purple Martin Conservation Association, “The Dawnsong has proven to be one of the most powerful tools used today to attract martins to a new site. It is the recording of ASY (after second year), or adult black male martins singing a song in the predawn hours that is used to lure subadult martins (those that were raised last year) to their colony site. Anyone that uses this tape can tell you that IT WORKS.” Research by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Department of Natural Resources in Minnesota shows that playing recordings of Chimney Swift vocalizations results in swifts investigating artificial chimneys. 

An ASY purple martin (left) perches next to a decoy as it investigated the apartment.

The challenge with using sound recording at both the Sanctuary and at Hammonasset is that there is no access to a source of electricity. The solution is to use a solar-powered sound system. A suitable sound system is used by Audubon’s Project Puffin in Maine and by other seabird restoration projects that are typically located on isolated islands with no electricity. Murremaid Music Boxes builds custom sound systems for attracting birds throughout the world.

The solar panel for the chimney swift tower sound system is mounted on the roof of the bird blind.

Funds for the two sound systems came from an Audubon Collaborative Grant, a mini-grant from the Connecticut Ornithological Society, and matching funds from our members’ donations.

The Sanctuary sound system has attracted purple martins to investigate the apartments, however as of June 26, there are none nesting. The system at Hammonasset was installed late in the migration season and has not attracted any swifts. It will be used again during fall migration when swifts roost communally. Research indicates that swifts will use fall roost sites for nesting.

Further developments will be reported in the newsletter.

(From the July 2013 newsletter)