Editor's note: This is an occasional series from the Louisiana Master Naturalists of Greater Baton Rouge. Landlords, it's time to get the houses ready for the purple martins making their way here.

Natural gourds or plastic gourds, metal house or wooden house, gourd lines, gourd poles, gourd arms, porches, predator guards, dawn song audio recordings, purple martin decoys. There’s a lot to ...

GRAND HAVEN — The last pair of purple martins nesting in the gourds at Grand Haven State Park may have a tough time getting their young ready in time for the flight south to the Amazon rainforest.

Inside an artificial gourd hanging from an aluminum rack, a female purple martin sits on her eggs while her mate perches in the doorway to their human-made home in Erie. Meanwhile, 35 people watch.

My old aluminum purple martin house has supported generations of purple martin families — but not in the last few years. I’m not sure why the old house lost its appeal to the birds. The house was ...

Photo courtesy of Shawn Wyble The welcoming sign at the entrance to the Millers' farm. Photo courtesy of Shawn Wyble Now that's what I call a bird-friendly neighborhood! Mr. Miller's farm boasts over ...