'Sea' gulls? Not necessarily

Kingdom: Animalia

Family: Laridae

Species: Larus argenatus

 



















The typical noises of a day at the beach: Shrieks of girls being splashed by their little brothers, the whirring of the ice cream van engine, crying overtired children, and the all too familiar sound of the caws of sea gulls. Sea gulls in the UK consist of black-backed gulls and herring gulls (the latter is what I have observed here). They're the nuisance behind every day at the seaside, but they are becoming an even bigger issue away from the shoreline, despite having lived there for so long to be close to the water (they evolved 15 million years ago, so that's very very long!). In 2009 the herring gull was added to the Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern. Red is the highest conservation priority, with urgent action deemed to be necessary to protect the species. One of the main reasons for the falling numbers is that changes to fishing practices in the UK have resulted in food shortages for rural gulls. This has lead to a division of the herring gulls into two groups: urban and rural, and it is urban which are the problem to us.

Numbers of urban sea gulls have quadrupled in the last 15 years, and numbers of attacks on humans have also increased. However, it is humans who are partially to blame for this aggression. People are throwing increased amount of litter on the streets, attracting gulls to urban areas. They also encourage the aggressive behaviour shown by urban sea gulls by feeding them, which leads to attacks on humans with food. The gulls are also attracted to cities as they can nest on the roofs of office blocks and houses (and libraries and lecture theatres...) which means they can avoid predators such as foxes and, as a result, more chicks survive, meaning urban environments are less hostile to the gulls.

The prevalence of urban gulls in cities (or in our case, universities) can be mitigated through actions of individuals. This includes seemingly small things like not littering, and aiming to reduce the amount of organic waste taken to landfill sites. Urban gulls can also be repelled through the actions of governments and local councils who can make public waste bins, domestic and business waste containers, and collection arrangements 'gull-proof'. Gulls may be annoying but they are very intelligent and will find a way to get into wheelie-style bins. Nothing stops them from getting their food! So here we have a conflicting issue - we need to protect the herring gulls but also stop feeding them, as it is causing problems with aggression. Research into management strategies is what is really needed, so the correct precautions can be taken to protect these interesting birds.