Seagulls baited with food and run over across north Wales
Seagulls are being deliberately enticed into roads with food and then injured or killed by cars, according to a charity.Caernarfon-based Foundation for Feathered Friends, (FFF) said the practice had increased over the past couple of years, with both adults and children spotted baiting the birds.FFF founder Denise Theophilus, 71, said the charity had received reports of food being deliberately thrown into roads in locations along the north Wales coast, including Prestatyn, Abergele and Rhyl.Gulls are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, like all wild birds, meaning it is illegal to intentionally kill or injure them.
Ms Theophilus, 71, started the group to "balance the hatred" she had seen for gulls when she moved to north Wales. They are also considered a conservation concern with the six main gull species found in the UK, particularly herring gulls, in decline."I don't want gulls thinking all humans are like this," she added.
Ms Theophilus said gulls were starving at this time of year and trying to feed their chicks, so would look for food wherever they can find it."I have lost track of all the messages that come in," she said."I was told about kids throwing food for gulls in Rhyl and watching as the cars nearly hit them."Children grow up thinking gulls are winged rats and it's OK to do whatever to them."
She added that a volunteer had picked up a bird in Prestatyn on Sunday after a man had thrown food out of his vehicle and it was hit by a car when it flew down to get it. Five of the charity's volunteers have small pens and aviaries at their homes where injured and sick birds can be cared for, but Ms Theophilus said some birds could not recover enough to be released back into the wild. She added that nothing was being done to enforce the law on the issue and the police were "not interested"."It's really discouraging that no-one does anything," she said.North Wales Police has been asked to comment.
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Times
4 hours ago
- Times
Eat with your back to the wall: smart ways to keep seagulls at bay
The attack came silently. A flash of white, a blur of feathers and the ice cream was gone. My four-year-old son was left staring at the stub of a cone in his hand. The herring gull, dwarfing my little boy with its four-foot wing span, soared away over the Dorset beach, its prize grasped between its claws. My son was too shocked to even cry. This will be familiar to anyone who has spent any time in a British seaside town. Wherever there are fish and chip shops, pasty stalls or ice cream kiosks, flocks of seagulls gather like pickpockets looking for an easy mark. Even in many inland areas, they are considered a nuisance. With sunseekers flocking to the beach this weekend as temperatures are expected to top 34C, gulls are likely to get a windfall. Neeltje Boogert, associate professor in animal behaviour at the University of Exeter's Penryn Campus outside Falmouth, Cornwall, is gloomy about seagull-human relations. 'I think it is getting worse, but the reason for that is we have more and more people carrying food around like a walking buffet,' she said. 'Gulls are a polarising species — some people hate them with a vengeance. But it is a bit perverse to blame the wildlife for being in our space when we took away their space first.' Seagulls are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, so culling or harming the birds is illegal. This is for good reason. Numbers of herring gulls, the most common gull species, have dropped by 72 per cent since 1969 across the British Isles, a significant enough fall to put them on the 'red list' of threatened species. Of those which remain, three quarters are thought to now live in urban areas, attracted by stable rooftop nesting sites and abundant sources of food. Many towns and cities have scrambled for ways to contain the issue. Aberdeen has tried bringing in a hawk to scare off its resident seagull colony. Other authorities have tried ultrasound deterrents or lasers. Councillors in Worcester even proposed lacing food with oral contraceptives to bring down numbers. But Boogert said it is important first to seek to understand gull behaviour. In Britain four gull species commonly nest in urban areas: herring gulls, kittiwakes and lesser and great black-backed gulls. Of these, only herring gulls will steal food from humans. Even then, the vast majority of herring gulls prefer to seek natural sources of food rather than chips or pasties. 'They are like football hooligans,' Boogert said. 'Just a few of them are giving the rest a bad name.' • Town besieged as 'hooligan' kittiwakes return in force Boogert and her colleagues have spent years studying gulls in Falmouth. 'We have found 90 per cent of parents feed their chicks with worms and beetles. It is not human food that they are giving to the them.' In one study, the scientists tried to tempt herring gulls with food to see how they reacted. 'Only about one in four gulls would come down at all. Most are very hesitant about coming anywhere near people.' Boogert believes the few aggressive gulls, such as the one that stole my son's ice cream, are displaying learnt behaviour. Stealing tourists' picnics is not innate or instinctive — it is something that has been taught to them by their parents. 'When we have observed juveniles, we have seen they are really bad at stealing food,' she said. 'Adults are successful about half the time.' But they have learnt how to up the odds. 'If there's a superabundance of food — a big picnic on the beach, for example — they will call other gulls. They will recruit them to exploit the food source and give them safety in numbers.' She said it is easy to resent this behaviour, but added: 'They're just doing what we would do. They like an easy meal in the same way we do. It is why fast-food chains are so popular. For them, it is much easier to steal food from people than it is to go find some fish in the sea.' When looking for food, gulls will avoid conflict, she said. It is why the gull targeted my youngest son, rather than his older brother or me or my wife. It is why it got the ice cream without leaving a scratch on my boy, a precision attack with zero collateral damage. 'When they are looking for food, they're not out to get us.' But she added: 'It's quite a different story when they are protecting their chicks.' This is part of the reason gulls have such a reputation for aggression. As the RSPB puts it: 'Gulls are excellent parents and invest a lot of time into caring for their chicks. Dive-bombing is an instinctive behaviour to defend their offspring when they feel threatened.' During the nesting season in May and June, and when the chicks begin to fly the nest from June until August, protective gulls will attack any human, dog or other animal which comes near their offspring whether they are still in their nest or on their first tentative flights. 'When they perceive you as a potential killer of their babies, they will definitely swoop in,' said Boogert. 'When we are studying the colony we wear helmets, because they will go for your head.' Gulls will attack with claws or beaks, or even target would-be assailants with their droppings. If on the beach — and the chicks are nowhere in sight — there are some proven strategies to avoid having your ice cream stolen. First, make eye contact. 'If you look at the gull, it knows it has been caught red-handed in its intention — it will stay away,' Boogert said. Second, eat with your back to a wall. 'They will attack when they have a clear approach route and an exit route. The same goes for eating under a parasol or an umbrella or a roof. If they can't see their escape they will not attack.' Some coastal primary schools in Cornwall have put up lines of bunting in order to deter gulls. 'It blocks the access flight and exit flight.' Finally, carefully consider your beach snacks. 'Gulls want calorie-dense foods,' Boogert said. 'If you are eating a carrot, you will probably be OK.'
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Man at war with 1,000 locals after winning £75-a-week council compensation over noise as loud as a LAWNMOWER caused by kids playing basketball
A homeowner has been branded a 'Victor Meldrew' killjoy after he complained about noise 'as loud as a lawnmower' coming from children playing on a basketball court. The man, 53, is being paid £75-a-week compensation because an Ombudsman ruled he was wrongly treated by his local council. But residents living close to historic Hailey Park in Cardiff say it is a 'staggering' waste of public money, with more than 1,000 people signing a petition to keep the basketball court where it is. The Friends of Hailey Park organisation say the court has been there for more than 30 years. When a small housing estate was built 50 yards away, developers Bellway Homes used the area as a storage compound for their diggers and machinery. It was turned back into a basketball court when the houses were finished and that's when the noise problems started. The family whose home overlooks the multi-use games area say they have been driven crazy by bouncing balls for the last 10 years. The father-of-one called in noise experts who recorded the sound of at 70 decibels, slightly above the level of a car door being shut. He said: 'Can you imagine a basketball being bounced 50 times a minute outside your house? That's what we have to put up with. 'This house is my dream home, I bought it to be near the park and there was never a basketball court there. More than 1,000 people have signed a petition for the court to remain where it is 'When they are playing out there we can't have the windows open, we can't have conversations, it's so loud.' Professional readings taken from his home showed a ball hitting the wire mesh in the play area reached 90 decibels - as noisy as a powered lawnmower. The hoops were removed from the court six years ago but that hasn't stopped the noise from youngsters bouncing basketballs and using it for football kickabouts. When his complaints to Cardiff Council fell on deaf ears the homeowner turned to the Public Services Ombudsman saying it was having a 'substantial impact' on his life. The Ombudsman ruled Cardiff Council had not taken appropriate action and was told to offer him £300 compensation and then £75-a-week until the situation was resolved. The homeowner, a local businessman who has so far been paid £1,200, says he doesn't want the money, he just wants the court to be moved to a better location in the 60-acre park. His life has become more unbearable since the compensation deal was made public, as he claims people are using the court at 2am 'out of spite'. He's also been accused of nibmyism, suffered online abuse and been publicly shunned by locals who mistakenly believe he also wants to get rid of the children's playground next to the basketball court. More than 1,000 locals have now signed a petition for the court to be kept in the same spot. Clearly distressed he told Mail Online: 'That is utter nonsense. Children laughing and playing is the most wonderful sound in the world. 'It's the incessant noise from the basketball court that nobody should have to put up with. I feel as if I'm being 100 per cent victimised for just wanting a quiet life. 'I'm a nice guy, I'm not a complainer. I'm the innocent party in all this. 'There are safeguarding issues now, people are that irate they're threatening online to damage my property. What next? Are they going to attack my wife? It's intimidating and we've done nothing wrong.' Feelings are running high among people who have used the park since they were children. One grandmother, who didn't want to be named, said: 'This fella is a bit of a Victor Meldrew, none of the other people living there have complained about the noise. 'If he wins this one then the next thing is he'll be complaining about the noise from the children's playground.' Others are concerned that the complainant is getting more than £10-a day after he chose to buy a house next to a play area. Mum-of-one Laura Kalirai, said: 'I find it a bit worrying, how far can this go? Does this mean we're going to start having to pay for everybody to be compensated for things they don't like about where they live.' (THIS FROM THE BBC WALES REPORT) Paul Rock, 58, a Friends of Hailey Park committee member and the group's treasurer, said: 'I find it staggering that public money is being spent in this way. I don't know if that's normal. 'I'm sure Cardiff Council can ill afford to hand over £300-a-month to a private individual.' 'The basketball court has been there for many years, it's a useful outdoor space for children to play and where parents teach their kids to ride a bike. 'When Cardiff Council put sound recording equipment in the man's garden they said it was just marginally above the threshold at times.' 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Daily Mail
16 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Serious concerns are raised over self-swab 'DIY' rape kits being issued to university students
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