Every once in awhile, seagulls will sweep in for a visit to my backyard. Compared to the songbirds that normally hang out at my feeder, these seagulls are huge. Wingspans are a minimum 2-3 feet across. They always look bigger up close. Their brilliant white feathers glisten in the sunshine and their light eyes are keen and alert. Their bright yellow beaks and feet contrast sharply with everything else in the woodland environment.
Seagulls have the advantage of being able to drink both fresh and salt water. They don’t mind what’s on the menu either. However, they only show up in my yard if I throw out bread crusts that are large enough to be spotted from their flying altitude.
Although they’re quite attractive birds up close, regular visits from them are not to be encouraged. They can be VERY aggressive to both other animals and humans. Around homes where there’s a constant availability of large crusts, they’ll gather in larger numbers and roost on a nearby roof , leaving a terrible mess. They’re best appreciated at the seashore.
An excellent place to see large numbers of seagulls in Cow Bay is towards the end of Silver Sands beach. Their favorite gathering spots are clearly marked on the sand and rocks. Leave your bread crumbs at home.
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I love watching the gulls in their soaring flight.They have been a strong presence in my life for many years in various places. But we have a lot of trouble with them nesting on chimneys round here. Year before last, a chick fell into our garden, and we were bombarded by the parents from then on every time we went out. Had to put out cats’ trays indoors as they were afraid to go out. We ourselves had to go into the garden in twos – waving opened umbrellas or walking sticks…. What a life!
Hi, that’s awful, was that under a permanent basis or temporary for that specific year. The reason why I’m asking is that I mistakenly unintentionaly went close to a chick just to open the main entrance to my apartment and guess what the parents try to attack me, a frightening experience, ever since then on I step out of the building when I really have to, on day time with an umbrella in my hand and at night as usual. My question to you is, do they remember me from all the people living in this neighborhood or was it only that specific time. This is really really annoying.
Hi MPars, I think whenever birds have chicks to protect, they tend to be more aggressive than at any other time of the year. This behavior will likely continue until the offspring have left the nest.
I don’t know about seagulls, but crows can recognize faces and even the types of vehicles humans drive. They’re smarter than most of us often given them credit for.
What you have to deal with does seem very annoying but unfortunately that’s often what happens when humans and animal habitats overlap.
Good luck to you 🙂
Hi flandrumhill, thanks for the prompt reply, I’ve looked around the net a bit and it’s unfortunately true that these pests of the sky recognize faces just like crows. Here’s an interesting article about a hotel that uses hawks and falcons to scare the pesky birds off their property:
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2011/nov/11/falconer-provides-unique-solution-hotel-del/
here’s the video:
Best,
MPars
MPars, those hawks and falcons certainly earn their keep 😉 Thanks for adding the video.
Good luck with protecting yourself. If those seagull beaks are strong enough to crack open a crab or shell, you don’t want to know what they can do to your head!
Yikes. I was attacked by a Blue Jay once when a chick fell into the woods behind the house. As bad as it was, seagulls are SO much larger (with larger beaks too!!)
I read today that they’re such a menace in Scotland that people have resorted to taking eggs from their nests and boiling them.
The seagulls here are totally annoying 😦
They just hop up in the middle of the road or take a crap on my car.
Especially since I don’t live even that close to lake Ontario.
Ahmed, when I lived in Upper Canada I called them ‘seagulls’ too. But shouldn’t they be called ‘lakegulls’ or ‘parkinglotgulls’ instead? Because they’re such a nuisance, they’re often known as ‘searats’ or ‘rats-with-wings’ which may be the most fitting term yet.
[…] minutes into my trek , I stumbled across this large carcass of a seagull. I had just made a large painting of a gull’s head last month and recognized it immediately as a Herring Gull by the red markings on its mouth. […]
I agree: seagulls are best admired from a safe distance, as they swoop and swerve along a long stretch of beach. I’d rather use the zoom lens in my camera to its maximum capacity than try to get close and personal with those vicious beaks!
I’ve been attacked by a Blue Jay in the past (while trying to rescue a baby bird) and they’re much smaller than seagulls. I can just imagine the damage a seagull could do with its beak.