The purple martin

(l’hirondelle pourprée in French)

HIRONBEC

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Once purple martins have adopted a nest box, they come back to it year after year

The purple martin seeks out the company of people and counts on their help for housing. In fact, it nests almost exclusively in nest boxes built by human hands.

It eats nothing but insects, which it catches in flight. Its flight is remarkably agile, dexterous and surprisingly fast.

It shows great loyalty to its breeding site. Each spring it returns there to breed, for the rest of its life.

The purple martin is the only species that lives in colonies in the multiple-compartment houses we set out for it.

Purple martins

Purple martins are often seen resting on the porches. That is part of their charm, in fact: they let themselves be warmed by the sun, giving enthusiasts like us ample opportunity to admire them and to fully enjoy their presence.

The purple martin (l’hirondelle noire)

This is our largest swallow, the one French speakers also call “l’hirondelle pourprée”, the purple swallow. The two-year-old adult male is a deep, shimmering purplish blue both above and below.

The female and the juvenile are dull and pale grey above. Its call is a sure way to tell it apart once you know it. It is fairly loud, pleasant, and made up of easily recognized rolling gurgles.

Today, this swallow almost always nests in multiple-compartment houses of wood or aluminium.

The purple martin is the one that stays longest at the nesting site, and that is no doubt what makes it so interesting. It leaves us at the end of August to begin its long migration to Brazil.