Long story here....we have a small holiday apartment on the west coast (of Ireland), with a balcony. Some of the local holidaymakers throw food out occasionally for the local gulls and crows. The Herring Gulls sit on the sloping roof of a church about 300 metres away. A few days ago, I had six jars of anchovies that were years out of date (holiday flats...you forget stuff you've stored there!), so I decided this was healthier than the bread that people usually throw out for the gulls. So...I put them all on a plate, went to the balcony, and before the first anchovy had even hit the ground, the gulls were heading en masse for the green, and in a matter of two minutes, all the anchovies were gone, into the gullets of about thirty Herring Gulls.
A few days later, I found a punnet of strawberries in the fridge that had begun to grow mould, so I took them to the balcony....I threw out the first one, expecting another flurry of gulls, and only two lazily drifted over, circled the two or three strawberries I'd thrown by the time they arrived, and drifted off without touching them. The other thirty or so gulls on the distant roof didn't even bother.
So, I learned at least that Herring Gulls don't think much of strawberries. But they make a bee-line for anchovies, or even bread that others throw out. What I wonder about is, how do the Gulls know what is palatable, or edible, at a distance of 300 metres? Do they "see" something we don't, different light wavelengths in anchovies v. strawberries, etc., so that they don't waste time and energy chasing after stuff they can't, or won't eat? At the same time, why do so many seabirds eat plastic, when one would imagine that doesn't bear much resemblance to actual food?
Any ideas greatly appreciated. (P.S., I threw the entire punnet of strawberries out, and some rooks ate them later. Not quickly mind, they didn't seem enthralled).
A few days later, I found a punnet of strawberries in the fridge that had begun to grow mould, so I took them to the balcony....I threw out the first one, expecting another flurry of gulls, and only two lazily drifted over, circled the two or three strawberries I'd thrown by the time they arrived, and drifted off without touching them. The other thirty or so gulls on the distant roof didn't even bother.
So, I learned at least that Herring Gulls don't think much of strawberries. But they make a bee-line for anchovies, or even bread that others throw out. What I wonder about is, how do the Gulls know what is palatable, or edible, at a distance of 300 metres? Do they "see" something we don't, different light wavelengths in anchovies v. strawberries, etc., so that they don't waste time and energy chasing after stuff they can't, or won't eat? At the same time, why do so many seabirds eat plastic, when one would imagine that doesn't bear much resemblance to actual food?
Any ideas greatly appreciated. (P.S., I threw the entire punnet of strawberries out, and some rooks ate them later. Not quickly mind, they didn't seem enthralled).
