Lunch is on us – herring gulls get freedom of town

● No more cash to combat north-east ‘rats of the sky’ menace

Aberdeenshire Council has run out of money to combat the “rats of the sky” in a north-east town.

Over the years, Stonehaven has explored a variety of methods to challenge its population of pesky herring gulls.

Nests have been removed, hawks deployed and buildings made “gullproof ” to fend them off.

The birds, which have been referred to as “rats of the sky” in the past, have a habit of nabbing food from the hands of unsuspecting people walking through the coastal town.

Soon, they will begin nesting and laying eggs once again.

In previous years, the Stonehaven Town Centre Improvement Group (STIG) – a collaboration between Aberdeenshire Council and community groups – has contracted specialists to remove nests and eggs during the mating season.

That, however, had only been made possible thanks to the financial support of property owners.

Now it has emerged the council no longer has the budget for the work and has said it is “extremely unlikely” the town’s gull egg and nest removal plan will go ahead this year.

A spokesman said: “I can confirm it is extremely unlikely the gull egg and nest removal programme in Stonehaven will go ahead this year due to the lack of residents and businesses signing up to the scheme.”

Last night chairman of the Stonehaven Community Council, Raymond Christie, described the gulls as a “huge problem” for the town – and in particular the town’s ice cream shops and chippers.

He said: “Council officers tried to get money from residents and local businesses but the take-up this year has been less than in 2019.

“There is also no money for the council to cover the costs, which is not surprising given this year’s cuts.

“The gulls are already spreading and we will have a major increase by the end of the year now.

“Peter head and Fraserburgh have similar problems.”

Last week, Exeter University unveiled research that showed that urban gulls steathily watch humans eat. Herring gulls were presented with two identical food items – one of which they had seen a human holding.

The gulls pecked more often at the handled food, suggesting they use human actions when deciding what to eat.

Madeleine Goumas, of the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at Exeter, told Science Daily: “UK herring gull numbers are declining, but urban populations have increased.

“Despite the fact they’re a common sight in many towns, little is known about urban gull behaviour.

“We wanted to find out if gulls are simply attracted by the sight of food, or if people’s actions can draw gulls’ attention towards an item.

“Our study shows that cues from humans may play an important part in the way gulls find food and could partly explain why gulls have been successful in colonising urban areas.”

The study follows research which found staring at gulls makes them less likely to steal food.

SITTING PRETTY: Herring gulls will soon begin nesting and laying eggs and this year they will be left to their own devices in Stonehaven