My urban friend can now sympathize with the farmers.

He recently purchased a bird feeder, and while at the store, was amazed by the large sized bags of bird feed that were on display next to the feeders.

“Why would you ever buy that much bird seed?” he asked.

At the farm, we had many, many bird feeders. I was very aware how much bird seed you could go through in just a few days once the birds found your feeder. “Believe me, you can easily burn through a lot of seed in very little time,” I replied.

Armed with a very nice glass and copper bird feeder and small bag of bird seed, we left the store.

The next time I saw him, I was informed that the blackbirds had discovered his feeder and while they were too big to easily sit at it and feed, they’d figured out a way to perch one leg on the feeder, flap their wings, shake seed onto the ground, and eat. In short, they were eating the feeder dry and making a huge pest of themselves.

“Birds are smart creatures,” I said. It’s one of the fun things about bird feeders, watching how they behave with each other and their attempts. “Doesn’t matter if the bird feeder wasn’t meant for them. Birds will figure out how to get the seed.”

I didn’t bother mentioning how much fun he’d be having once a squirrel or two was introduced into the mix.

I watched with amusement as his exasperation grew as blackbirds hovered around the feeder and on nearby branches.

He pounded on the window. “Go away!” he’d holler, eventually opening the sliding deck door and hollering out the door to scare the blackbirds away. Other birds would come, to — finches, chickadees, sparrows — but they don’t like to hang around when the big blackbirds are fussing around the feeder. “They’re eating all of the bird seed!”

“Now you know how a farmer feels in the fall when his sunflower field is getting sacked by the blackbirds,” I joked. “You are such a home owner.”

There were further mutterings about the use of guns, blackbird cannons, and the use of Flock Buster, though I’m not sure any were the proper response to a handful of birds eating all of the food out of a bird feeder.

Regardless, the seed is all gone, as are the fickle birds save a few now-disappointed finches.

“I’m going to wait a while before I fill it again,” my friend said.

Feel the farmer’s pain.