Why are predator guards necessary?
Several predators can easily climb the poles supporting houses or gourd racks and will then make a quick meal of martin eggs, nestlings, and adults. Predators include raccoons, opossums, rat snakes, and squirrels. A properly designed and placed predator guard will keep these predators from climbing a martin pole. Simple greasing of the pole will not deter these predators. See Purple Martin Update issue 8(2), June 1998, “Predator Baffles: Easy, Inexpensive and Effective” for instructions on how to make your own predator guard http://www.purplemartin.org/update/PredBaff.html Predators such as rat snakes, raccoons, and opossums are very common and can be found in city parks, suburban neighborhoods, and in many folks yards. Most of these predators are active at night, so landlords are often oblivious to their presence. Many folks believe that their clean yards have no snakes. Wrong, particularly in the Deep South. So ALL houses should be equipped with land predator guards. Information on p
Several predators can easily climb the poles supporting houses or gourd racks and will then make a quick meal of martin eggs, nestlings, and adults. Predators include raccoons, opossums, rat snakes, and squirrels. A properly designed and placed predator guard will keep these predators from climbing a martin pole. Simple greasing of the pole will not deter these predators. See Purple Martin Update issue 8(2), June 1998, “Predator Baffles: Easy, Inexpensive and Effective” for instructions on how to make your own predator guard http://www.purplemartin.org/update/PredBaff.html Predators such as rat snakes, raccoons, and opossums are very common and can be found in city parks, suburban neighborhoods, and in many folks yards. Most of these predators are active at night, so landlords are often oblivious to their presence. Many folks believe that their clean yards have no snakes. Wrong, particularly in the Deep South. So ALL houses should be equipped with land predator guards.
