Volunteer for staring challenge with gulls

ACADEMICS are looking for volunteers to have a stare off with seagulls in the name of research.

Researchers want to find out how the birds respond when looked at in the eye for a designated period of time.

The year-long Gull’s Eye Project has now been launched and will accept submissions until October next year. Participants are asked to remain 3-4 metres from the gull and maintain eye contact for up to five seconds.

Members of the public are asked to record their findings via an app, which the scientists will collate over the next 12 months.

Ecologists say the birds’ responses - such as if they stare back or fly away - might indicate their perception of risk.

The study by the University of Plymouth follows claims from researchers at the University of Exeter that staring at the birds might deter them from attempting to steal food.

A spokesperson for the project said: “We aim to find out whether response to eye contact might indicate a gull’s perception of the riskiness of their environment. We will test this in two ways.

“First, we will see if they fly away more often in conditions and locations that would be naturally risky for gulls. And second, we will run a parallel study using established methods to measure gull risk sensitivity in the areas of sightings.

“If these correlate to response to eye contact, you will have helped us develop a new method to evaluate environments from the gull’s own perspective. This will enable us to use citizen science to monitor gulls on a large spatial and temporal scale, which may help to understand regional population declines.”