Purple Martins, part 2

Regular readers with amazingly peculiar memories may recall my attempt last spring to establish a colony of Purple Martin's in my yard.

It seems like every experience our family has had with pets or wildlife has ended in tears (usually the kids, not me). Allow me to reminisce.

There was Tinkerbell the cat.
There was the fish (intended to replace the cat) that canibalized the baby fish.
There were the frog tad poles that hatched then died last month (I didn't tell you about that one, either).
There was the "pet worm" my eldest boy loved and treasured for about 2 hours, before it broke apart in his hands, sending him bawling to me (luckily, I found a worm that looked identical to the one that passed away, and was able to convince them that I "super glued" it back together).
And last year there were the Purple Martins who were slaughtered by sparrows.

We've decided to try and attract Purple Martins again. We put the house up a week ago, and immediately sparrows claimed it.

This year, I am fighting back against the sparrows. I've purchased a re-setting trap and placed it near the Martin house. I sprinkled a little cracked corn. Within a day, I had captured (and promptly dispatched) no less than eight sparrows.

I have noticed a young Martin male (or males, who can tell) visiting the house. With a little luck, this year's Purple Martin story will have a happier ending than last year. A sad ending for a sparrow is a great start for a Purple Martin.