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.”