Brettski - don't know where in Illinois you are but "our" martins showed up a couple of days ago too (St. Clair County). We have two martin pole-top communities: one gourd system and one traditional compartment house. We've had PMs return for the last 10+ years. They seem to prefer the gourds, don't you think? I am a big PM fan (along with all other birds) and could watch/listen to them all day! Do you think we could attract them to our new 1.5 acre pond in the woods? Seems like they would have plenty of swooping area over the pond, but of course it is a different type of environment than what you typically see them in.
