Seedy characters

Our feathered friends will be looking for sustenance this winter, and we can help provide it.

By BETTY RIDGE

WELLING — Although Don and Joyce Varner have a television in their dining room, much of the time they prefer to watch the action going on outdoors.

About 15 species of birds frequent their feeders during the winter, ranging from the bright-feathered cardinals to the more subdued white-throated sparrows and chickadees. And then there are the four-legged creatures attracted by the feeder.

Unlike some birders, the Varners don’t begrudge the squirrels the portion of feed they manage to snatch. And they’ve been intrigued by the antics of at least one cagey raccoon that climbed, hanging from its feet, from a cable and was reeling up a suet feeder when they caught him red-handed – or, in the coon’s case, black-footed.

The Varners have been avid birders for most of their lives. Don began watching birds at age 16, and Joyce joined him in his passion when they began dating some time later. Since then, they’ve been active in the Audubon Society and have participated in numerous bird counts.

For the past three decades, much of their watching has focused on their yard and the surrounding wooded area at Welling. It has all the elements needed to attract plenty of birds — woods, water, and plenty of brush to protect the birds from predators.

The Varners keep four or five feeders filled year-round, although the birds need the feed more when the ground is snow- or ice-covered. They also keep two hummingbird feeders going from spring through fall, with two hummingbird feeders hanging outside and two others in the dishwasher. It’s important to keep the feeders clean, Joyce said.

“The hummingbirds are gone now. They did stay longer this year than usual,” Don said. “It wasn’t just us — a lot of people saw them later, I don’t know why. You can’t say it was warmer, because it wasn’t.”

They saw their last hummingbird this year Oct. 15.

“There are some stragglers, and you may not even notice it,” he said.

The hummingbirds winter in Mexico or in southern Louisiana, and they remember where they found food last year. On April 1, when the Varners had yet to put up their feeders, one frustrated fellow came and zoomed around their porch, looking for his feeding place from last year.

Most of the hummingbirds in this area are the ruby-throated variety, although there are some rufous hummingbirds, but they’re mostly found west of Interstate 35.

If you’re considering putting up some bird feeders to watch the birds this winter, you’ll probably want to buy a bird guide. The Varners advise purchasing one for the eastern part of the United States, as it covers the species that come to this area.

“The most imoprtant thing, if you’re going to feed birds, is to keep your area clean,” Joyce said.

Of course, it’s impossible to keep all the shell pieces and other debris cleaned up around the feeder, but it doesn’t really hurt. The Varners are meticulous about keeping the hummingbird feeders washed, and the others as clean as possible.

They feed other birds year-round, “but only for our benefit,” Don said. “The birds don’tr eally need it except in the cold, when the snow covers, the ground, or ice.”

For feeding birds year-round, or just during the winter, bird lovers have several options.

The first method of feeding the Varners employ is the easiest, and the cheapest. It requires no special equipment, just a bag of bird feed.

“You just put it on the ground,” Don said.

“We scatter scratch. Anybody who has ever had chickens knows what that means, cracked corn,” Joyce added.

The cracked corn on the ground attracts white-throated and white-crowned sparrows, as well as mourning doves.

The second feeder is perhaps the Varners’ favorite.

“We have a platform where we scatter sunflower seeds,” Joyce said.

They recommend black oil sunflower seeds, which are the most easily digestible for the birds, and the birds enjoy them.

The third feeder is a hanging thistle tube. Some are only about a foot long, but the one the Varners purchased several years ago is several feet long.

“Goldfinches love it, but you have to have a special thistle feeder,” Don said.

Chickadees also like the thistle.

Some rural landowners may be reluctant to feed thistle, having fought thistle infestations on their property. But the thistle bird seed is imported and has been roasted. It’s guaranteed not to sprout.

Another feeder is a cage feeder for suet. The wire cage holds in the fatty suet mixture, and the feeder provides birds with a place to perch, as well as having a roof over the suet. Some types of birds will grab a bite a suet while fluttering around the feeder, but cardinals require the perch to sit and feed.

“The biggest problem with suet is coons. They are masters at getting that suet,” Don said, telling the tale of the coon who crawled along the wire and was hoisting the suet cage when they spotted him.

The suet also can be put in little cages nailed to trees. It doesn’t spoil, and woodpeckers, white-breasted nuthatches, chickadees and titmice love it. Cardinals also can learn to enjoy suet.

The Varners also have a traditional bird feeder in John Deere green and yellow. It holds plenty of sunflower seeds.

And what about those squirrels?

“I have never found a really squirrel-proof feeder,” Don said. “Even if it works for a while, the squirrels can usually figure it out.”

While seed is available in many locations, the Varners prefer to purchase their bird feed at a local feed store or co-op.

“The preferred seed is black oil sunflower seed that they have at feed stores,” Don said. “The birds like it, but above all, it’s more nutritious.”

“Some of those mixtures they sell just are not that nutritious,” Joyce said. “Another good food that particularly mourning doves and white-throated sparrows like is white millet.”

She feeds it by putting it on the ground.

And there’s one thing birds need, but many people overlook: a good water source, especially in freezing weather.

“Most people don’t put out water, which is what they actually need,” Don said.

They use a heated dog dish, and put a rock in the middle of it so birds can alight on it and drink.

Roger Saunders of the Tahlequah Farmers Co-op said this is the time of year when people usually begin picking up bird feed.

“We have a wild bird mix, which is an already mixed feed,” he said.

The co-op also stocks black oil sunflower seed, thistle, safflower and millet, along with suet and suet products.

“Black oil sunflower seed is by far the most popular,” Saunders said.

People can also find supplies to ensure the birds have water. Saunders has birdbath heaters, as well as the heated dog bowls the Varners recommend.