Sacramento Birds of Note are birds who as a species or subspecies are of special concern or interest in the Sacramento region.
Purple Martins are summer residents that live and breed in colonies in the Sacramento Region. Unfortunately, the number of breeding colonies in our region has been in drastic decline. According to research by Dan Airola, “the Sacramento population declined by 88% between 2004 and 2019, to only 21 nesting pairs.”
Life Under the Fast Lane, a comprehensive report on long-term studies of the Sacramento population of Purple Martins is available for purchase through the Central Valley Bird Club and was published with support from the Sacramento Bird Alliance.
In October 2025, Dan Ariola presented Status and Conservation of the Purple Martin in California in 2025 at the Sacramento Bird Alliance Monthly meeting. You can watch a video of the presentation here.