Libby Buck
Second-year male Purple Martin perched on the gourd array at the Linda Loring Nature Foundation in 2025. The blue auxiliary band #57 and federal aluminum band are visible on the bird’s legs. In July 2024, this male was banded as a nestling in Wellfleet, MA. All photographs by the author.
After spending the winter in South America, Purple Martins (Progne subis) migrate thousands of miles to breeding grounds across eastern North America, where they arrive in spring to establish nesting territories (Stutchbury and Morton 2009). Throughout eastern North America, Purple Martins nest almost exclusively in human-provided housing, making the establishment of new breeding colonies dependent on suitable habitat, active management, and the arrival of dispersing birds (Brown et al. 2021).
For decades, Purple Martins arrived on Nantucket each spring only to disappear a day or two later. Although the species was reported periodically during migration, no breeding had been documented on the island until 2025, when a pair successfully nested at the Linda Loring Nature Foundation (LLNF), producing the first known Purple Martins to hatch and fledge on Nantucket. The successful nesting in 2025 was not the first time Purple Martins had reached the island. It was the first time the right conditions came together for a pair to stay and successfully raise young.
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