Purple martins

• Purple martins are the largest North American swallows at about 8 inches long with about a 15-inch wingspan.

• Adult males are entirely iridescent purplish-blue, females are gray beneath, and first-year males have purple splotches beneath.

• They feed on flying insects, especially dragonflies, damselflies, butterflies, flying ants and bees, but they rarely eat mosquitoes.

• Attract nesting birds with a preconstructed aluminum, gourd-style or wooden-style martin house.

• For information about martin houses: birdwatching.com/tips/purplemartin_landlord.html