Frustration for council as gull cull is forbidden
Looe’s quest to control wild bird population provokes criticism from outraged public. Howard Lloyd reports
A COUNCIL in Cornwall has been met with a backlash over its application to ‘control’ the local gull population.
Looe Town Council saw the application rejected due to what it saw as a “stricter approach” over the protection of wild birds by Natural England and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra).
The council said the outcome was “undoubtedly a disappointment to residents” and vowed to continue trying to implement measures to restrict the gull population.
However, comments added to the council’s Facebook post over the matter saw the authority receive heavy criticism.
“Regrettably, Looe Town Council has been unsuccessful again this year in its application for a licence to control herring gulls. We understand that there is no Council in Cornwall that has been successful in an application to control wild birds,” the council said.
“This is due to changes in Defra and Natural England’s stricter approach to the protection of wild birds, which includes the herring gull species.
“This is undoubtedly a disappointment to residents, and we will continue to lobby for changes for next year to this approach in conjunction with other councils.
“In the meanwhile, we encourage everyone to dispose of food waste sensibly and not to feed the birds. However good intentioned it is, it encourages gulls to nest on roofs as they see a local and easy source of food. This results in attacks whilst defending chicks, and also increases aggressive behaviour over food.
“The Council will work closely with takeaway retailers in the town to encourage members of the public to dispose of their food waste sensibly.
“We can assure residents that we will work with Defra and Natural England towards a solution to be able to undertake the service in 2022.”
The post did not go down well with everyone. “Surely, if people don’t like gulls around their homes, they shouldn’t choose to live by the sea,” Lynn Fletcher commented.
‘We encourage everyone to dispose of food waste sensibly and not to feed the birds’ LOOE TOWN COUNCIL
“Gulls have lived by the sea since time immemorial and have as much right, if not more right, to live and feed there as any human. You can’t just go round killing everything that a minority of people deem to be an inconvenience! Shame on the council.”
“The only reason the gulls are there is that their own food source is being eaten by us! It’s humanity’s fault, not the gulls,” said Honor Wheeler.
Mary Hebbard added: “Sounds to me like it’s the councillors who need to go, not the gulls. Trying to cull and persuade others to cull a red-listed species is quite frankly despicable. I enjoyed visiting Looe but won’t return if this continues. If the council are doing it for the tourists, then this one won’t be back.”
Tracy Turner wrote: “You are so out of touch with what residents want it is unbelievable! Why not do a survey and find out instead of assuming the population want you to murder a protected species!”
Gulls and their eggs and nests are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which is why Natural England – the statutory conservation agency – licences any action affecting them.
Natural England said it ‘recognises that a number of problems with gulls in urban areas have been highlighted’. James Diamond, Natural England operations director, said: “Natural England provides clear licensing advice to local authorities and landowners on the actions they can take to manage potential gull problems.
“Where certain species pose a risk to public health or safety, immediate action is allowed; this can include removing their nests and eggs and, for lesser black-backed gulls, lethal control if necessary.
“We recommend that local authorities develop a long-term management strategy, using a package of measures, to keep gull numbers in check.”
Herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are members of the genus Laridae, with 24 different species within the genus.
Most commonly, it is herring gulls that we refer to as ‘seagulls’ and these are the most common species of Laridae in urban areas.
Herring gulls are protected due to their declining numbers over the past 25 years, but conflict between gulls and humans remains an issue in coastal towns. They are subject to controversy due to the regular conflict they have with humans, whether this arises from ripping open bins or directly taking food from our hands.
Their behaviours may be a direct result of the actions we have taken – or have not taken, for that matter.
The act of stealing food from another organism has been observed in a range of organisms, including spiders, flies, chimps, hyenas and African hunting dogs, as well as in other birds. In this case, gulls have learnt there is a constant and easily available supply of food in taking food from our bins and/or directly out of our hands. It saves them investing large amounts of energy into foraging for potentially scarcer natural food resources.