Gull after my own heart
THEY are an endangered species – yet herring gulls are deliberately attacked by people who believe they are pests.
Now Alexandra Farmer is on a mission to save Britain’s most hated bird.
Already this summer her sanctuary has rescued 500 gulls – up a quarter on 2016.
“We have to deal with gulls being maliciously hit with spades, poisoned, kicked or shot,” says Alex. “Drivers speed up at them and people even throw food in the road to get them run over.
“Last year we treated one that had been completely spray-painted red.”
As well as saving the seabirds’ lives she tries to educate people about them.
Alex said: “Gulls can be territorial and aggressive and won’t think twice about snatching an ice cream from your hands.
“But usually it’s a handful of birds of one breed causing problems. They are on the RSPB red list, so councils can’t cull them.
“Sadly people don’t know the difference and take matters into their own hands.
Alex adds: “People need to stop feeding them, and we need less litter on the street so they can’t scavenge. No matter how much you hate them, the herring gull population is in decline. Numbers have halved in the last 30 years.”
Alex, 28, was training to be a teacher when she began taking in injured hedgehogs, toads, deer, seal pups and birds.
As word spread, she was inundated and set up the Whitby Wildlife Sanctuary at her family’s farm in North Yorkshire in 2009, eventually quitting her teaching job.
She said: “The gull thing came about by accident due to our location by the coast. Whitby is a main gull breeding site.”
The sanctuary has 50 volunteer rescuers and drivers and expects to take in 3,000 casualties this year.
Now Alex is fundraising to move the charity into a purpose-built building with a hospital to cope with demand. ■■To donate – or volunteer – visit whitbywildlife.co.uk. The sanctuary also has its own Facebook page and it appreciates donations.