Wild Appalachia: Bird Feeders
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — Birds are survivors. They are the only dinosaurs that made it through the mass extinction.
Yes, these little guys are theropods - the same group that included velociraptors and even the most famous of all, the T-Rex.
Now, they are as diverse as ever with more than 11,000 species known worldwide with an array of color.
Putting out a bird feeder or two is a great way to see them up close.
"You can get all kind of seed mixes at different stores. They all sell different type of feed mixes but just a regular black oil sunflower seed is the best thing to feed them. The seed mix that you get has a little bit of black oil sunflower seed in it, but the rest of it, a lot of times you just get stuff the birds really don't eat," avid Charleston bird watcher Jim Triplett advised.
It's especially important to feed our feathered friends during the winter when natural food sources become scarce.
Triplett said water is also a big help.
"Birds are more attracted to water in the wintertime," he said. "A little container that you can just stick some water out in your yard come Friday and just kind of peek outside Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and then report what you see as far as those birds"
That's what Jim did recently with the Great Backyard Bird Count, which was started by Cornell University. It helps scientists understand global bird populations before they migrate.
"In June and July, they're busy feeding their chicks and they're tired. A lot of them start molting at that time. For instance, bobolinks, they'll molt," Triplett said. "They have about a 3,000 mile trip they have to go on. They're the furthest traveling songbird we have down in the southern part of South America."
You may have reservations to put seed out now due to the bird flu, but Triplett said it doesn't look to be impacting songbirds at this point.
"According to Cornell and what I've read so far no, it's not," he explained. "It is in flocks where they're raising chickens and turkeys and dairy farms. That's where they're having a problem with the bird flu right now."
If you're having a problem with squirrels, placing your feeder on a post with a baffle underneath should keep them away.
"It's wonderful to have a cup of coffee in the morning and look outside and see the birds at your feeder," Triplett said. "You kind of forget about politics and other strange things that's going on in the world. Birds don't care."
