Herring gulls - Hated or loved? (3 Viewers)

[pianoman]

Though Herring Gulls are of course still very common, It seems to me that in the last 20 years or so it's been replaced by the Black Headed as the standard "seagull" of towns and coasts. The HG's cheerful laughing has been overtaken by the less attractive squabbling and wheedling sound of BHG in many places...

or is it just me?

 

[Andrew Whitehouse]

Though Herring Gulls are of course still very common, It seems to me that in the last 20 years or so it's been replaced by the Black Headed as the standard "seagull" of towns and coasts. The HG's cheerful laughing has been overtaken by the less attractive squabbling and wheedling sound of BHG in many places...

or is it just me?

Here in Aberdeen, there are still very large numbers of Herring Gulls but there seem to be more and more Common Gulls breeding in the city.

 

[OwlTalon]

Ahhh......Herring Gulls.

"Behold the humble Gull, much can be learned from him: Good things often come to those who annoy the *ell out of people who have stuff they want!"
-myself

I like gulls. They are a bit trashy and annoying, but they really are amazingly adaptable, and great flyers! I have them in my coastal neighborhood.

 

[Zarac]

I'm a fan of the Herring Gulls which co-inhabit my seaside town. When I'm talking on the phone people can hear them and comment on how nice it is to hear the sounds of the seaside. Some people complain they are responsible for rubbish on the street because they open the black rubbish bags left there - personally, I blame Homo Sapiens who have choices in how to dispose of rubbish.

 

[Peewit]

I've been splatted by pigeons in the past, but not gulls, despite having lived on the coast all my life.

To all those who have been "got" in this way, think of this: it is lucky that cows can't fly

Hmm it is a bit like that with pigeons, bombs away is the only word I can use. Glasgow is a great spot for some decoration.

Zarac I agree here that humans are too blame for waste matter. Gulls are just intelligent enough to understand how to get their food source.

Personally, I have got to admit I do not mind gulls in general at all. To me they are characters, and certainly liven up a place. They are just clever birds, and they have learned to take advantage of a free food source from man

I have lived and worked in Aberdeen along with OH, and there are gulls of all types up there, and they are very over active at the best of times. Take your car in for the day, park your car in Aberdeen near the towncentre Quay, go to work, come back to the car at the end of the day. You find that your car has been completely covered with gull poo - big time.

It is sticky, smells revolting, and hard to get off the paintwork of the car. This is where a lot of fish is dispatch as it is near the shipping port, so hence the fish smell on your car.
So it is a hosepipe job each night. Just adds some fun to your day :eek!:

I have also worked in Aberdeen, with Gulls of all types living on the office building roof where I worked. They tap dance all day across the roof. If we opened a window we where blown away with a gull shrieking at full tilt, and yes this is what they do when flying around the coast. :eek!: Noise level booms a lot,
Then you could not hear yourself talk on the phone. :eek!:

When the breeding season comes into play the noise increases a lot in many ways. They swop you and poo on you too if you get close to their nests. You hear the youngsters mewing too from all buildings around you. It was all round entertainment.
Apparently it is against the law the disturb that gulls during the breeding season in the UK, so that is how they are so successful too.
Juvs cannot be interfered with in any way at all, so they grow up, and so the cycle starts again.

Gulls of all types will around for a long time yet :t:

 

[Farnboro John]

BOU don't seem to like them, at any rate they're dragging their heels over updating their taxonomy.

John

 

[Greysands boy]

Love the gulls!!!

Every time you get splatted by a townie gull just look at it as Karma people,
I will expalin we have driven these birds and many like them closer and closer to us with our wasteful ways in several ways in fact the food they scavinge is part of our ever speeding destruction of the planet gclimate change warms the seas etc moving plankton away from our shores chasing them are the sand eels (Also over fished) which are the staple diet for many of our majestic seabirds. So its our fault there here. You cant scold them for being survivors can you.
And on a less heavy note they look great and sound even better i live on the north devon coast (Plenty of gulls here!!!) I would be gutted if i couldnt listen to them every morning with my coffee!!!

Daz