Sun City Sun March 2023

PHOTO BY TOM MILLS

Donnie Kunich Owner/Broker (843) 301-8517 HOME SEARCH ON YOUR BIG SCREEN TV

Purple Martins rely on humans for safe habitat

By David W. Smith CONTRIBUTOR

You might have noticed that the large bird houses scattered throughout the community have recently been raised to the tops of their tall supporting poles. Purple Martins are beginning to arrive, and they rely on these condos to nest and produce their babies.

Purple Martins are North America’s largest swallow, nearly 8 inches long with a 15-inch wingspan. Their blackish feathers appear to glow iridescent blue, purple, or even green, depending upon the light.

Both genders take two years to attain fully adult plumage. Males have black feathers all over, while females are brown on their backs with lighter under parts, and juveniles have muted variations.

Their flight is very acrobatic, swooping high for their favorite food – insects – and they are among the bird world’s fastest fliers. Their diet is almost exclusively high-flying insects including wasps, dragonflies and moths, catching them in the air during

flight.

In the 60s, a businessman started a rumor that Purple Martins ate lots of mosquitoes. The mosquito-eating rumor has since been debunked, as mosquitoes are low-flying and out at night while Purple Martins hunt during the day at much higher altitudes. The man’s company sold lots of Purple Martin houses, many based on his erroneous claims. A 2015 study found Purple Martins eat a lot of invasive fire ants, probably during inclement weather when flying insects are less available. Our Lowcountry certainly can appreciate as many fire ant predators as we can get.

Deforestation has forced these birds to rely on humans for their nesting sites. East of the Rocky Mountains, they nest almost exclusively in human-supplied housing and are dependent on us for their survival. Their relationship with humans goes back before European colonization. Native Americans hung hollowed-out gourds to en-

A female purple martin checks out the view from her first floor “condo,” while males confer on the side porch.

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courage Purple Martins to live in proximity, probably for insect control.

Twelve condos, each containing 12 “apartments” were put up in Sun City about 10 years ago by the bird club and have provided nesting for several hundred birds.

Purple Martins fear predators and won’t use condos when nearby trees exceed the condo’s height. This spring several condos were moved, as adjacent trees had grown too tall in the condos’ original locations. ‘Scouts,’ adult males looking for suitable nesting, have already been sighted at a couple of the new locations.

Purple Martins begin nest building around four to six weeks after they arrive. They typically build their nests out of straw, twigs and pine needles with a mud dam in the front of the nest. The final step is to line the bowl-shaped nest with green leaves. Nest building can take both parents three to four weeks to complete.

The female lays one egg per day, for a total of two to eight pure white eggs. Only the female can incubate the eggs because they

have a brood patch, a featherless area rich in blood vessels that transfers heat to the eggs. Incubation typically lasts 15 to 16 days, with hatching spread out over two or three

days. The young will fledge between 26 and 32 days after hatching and can receive care from both parents between one to two weeks after fledging.

Purple Martins exist only in the Americas, spending their winters in northern and central South America. They migrate to the eastern, midwestern and southwestern United States and southern Canada to breed.

The bird club is seeking monitors for a few of the locations. Monitoring entails keeping an eye on activity while the birds are in our area, from March through July, before migrating to South America for the winter.

Monitors also work with the club to lower and clean the condos in the fall and raise them in late winter. Condos are kept lowered during hurricane season.

Condos can also be found behind several private homes throughout Sun City. The Bird Club doesn’t keep condos in stock but will be happy to work with anyone interested in hosting these beloved songbirds. Email schhbirdclub@gmail.com for more information about monitoring, or about hosting Purple Martins with a condo of your owb.

David W. Smith is a member of the Lowcountry Environmental Action group.

This Purple Martin house was recently relocated to Fenwick Drive.

ROSEMARY SMITH

A day in Heaven full of inexplicable warmth, beauty

By Chris Roosa CONTRIBUTOR

(Editor’s note: Chris Roosa generally writes humorous features. This month, she has taken a break from the funny and offers a more thoughtful and reflective essay.)

The flowers were abundantly rich with vivid colors, lush beyond belief. Splashes of the deepest alizarin crimson stood alongside pale, yet rich, hues of yellow roses. The backdrop was a variation of vibrant greens with a massive scattering of flowers leading to a cobblestone walkway.

As I wandered along the path I was led to a towering gateway of beauty, surrounded by a valley deep with an intense pallet of colorful blooms. The rays of light were almost blinding as I strolled up to those gates.

There was a spiritual warmth that brought me to this passageway. I was drawn to walk on through to the other

side. The valley stretched out before me, more beautiful than anything I had ever seen. I was frozen in place, taking in all that my eyes could witness.

Today I went to Heaven, if only for a brief moment in time. I spent a day reuniting with my parents and friends from long ago and embraced past memories.

Oftentimes I had wondered what it would be like to spend another day with those that had gone on before me. What questions I would ask. since I’d had years to mature and recognize how much knowledge I had allowed to slip away. Questions had come up throughout my life that I didn’t know how to answer. Memories were so far removed that it was difficult to fully recapture them with any clarity.

First, I came upon my mother. I was overcome with emotion. My eyes took in the sight of her and my heart was

Giving Back

100+ Sun City Women Who Care raised $13,700 at its quarterly meeting in February and selected Jasper Animal Rescue Mission (JARM) as recipient of the funds. JARM rescues and provides shelter and humane care to the lost, abandoned, neglected or abused dogs and cats of Jasper County. Members who attended the presentation were Kate Crowley, Susan Frank, Cindy Phillip, Vicki Galbraith, Vicki Mack, Elaine Garcia, Rosalie Simmons, Karen Meyer, Diane McKinnery, Linda Lathrop (charity nominator), Gerry deAsla, Mary Lou Beavers, Camille Richardson and Jan Williams.

TOM MILLS

HEAVEN from page 8SC

filled with a warmth I can’t explain. I wanted to know what she was like as a young girl, how her life had unfolded. I inquired about the hardships that she suffered during WWII, when she became a widow at a very young age. I probed about her struggles so I could better understand her plight.

I wanted to take the necessary time to get to know my mother, now, as a friend. Had we both been equal in age, all those many years ago, we could have had a totally different relationship. Today I viewed her as the beautiful spirit she had become instead of seeing her from a child’s perspective looking up to a maternal figure. Our time together was rich and fulfilling.

Lovingly, my father and my sweet grandmother came into my view. Both of them had such an influence in my life. My dad was so stern and harsh. He was the one that instilled my strength and determination. My grandmother was just the opposite

with her soft and gentle manner.

I am aware of how I developed with so many of her traits. I remember how I often sat enjoying her description of trips around the world. Then there were the hours spent listening to her play Chopin while seated at her Steinway grand.

It was hard to move on from my family.

I continued drifting down that pathway, crossing over The Rainbow Bridge. Wagging tails and licks abundantly greeted me all at once. I fell down to my knees, with joyous tears in my eyes, as all my past pets showered me with their eternal love.

I wished I could have spent the entire day right in this special area of Heaven. There were so many to touch, from my very first dog to the last, they had all waited patiently at the bridge for this brief encounter.

Off in the distance, I saw my big fellow grazing when suddenly he became

alert. Upon spotting me, he trotted to my side. I mounted my thoroughbred and we galloped through the valley while once again I felt his power beneath my seat. The strength of his movement exploded as we sprinted through the clouds. But the hands of the clock were ticking by and, sadly, I needed to leave.

Next, I was able to spend hours with many dear and valued friends. I grew up with most from my childhood until their end. I took time to drink in all their happiness and joy. It was a day to reminisce, a day to share our happier times.

We were kids again, laughing and reflecting on stories that we each held dear. It was a time to indulge in my love for them – an instant to refill my emotional cup before moving forward.

As I came to the end of the path, I knew my time was short. Stacked below a vivid pink cherry tree sat an assortment of lovely boxes. Ribbons

and bows adorned each gorgeous cube while calling out my name.

Carefully I opened each treasure, but too soon I realized they were boxes of pain, for all those I had lost. Within reach, pink petals had fallen on a nearby trunk. I brushed the buds aside while lifting the domed lid. As I reached down inside, I felt a pool of dampness. On closer examination, I realized it was a gathering of all my tears. God had saved these droplets for me to discover as a remembrance of all those I had once loved.

I was granted a day in Heaven today that answered many questions and made my heart whole. I am beholden to this journey as it filled me with a new knowledge. I realized they all had such an influence on the person I am today.

If you could spend one day in Heaven, who would you want to see?

Chris Roosa is a resident of Sun City Hilton Head.

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Scenes on a dark and foggy night in Sun City

PHOTO BY TOM MILLS

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