Gulls steal £171m worth of our food every year – and they’re not even sorry!
After a lifetime living by the sea, Peter Moore should know better than to underestimate the cunning of a herring gull. But when a brazen bird swoops off with his untouched ice cream on Paignton seafront, he is prompted to investigate the science behind these feathered food thieves, their surprisingly clever tactics and why our seaside snacks are simply too tempting to resist. A cautionary tale for anyone enjoying fish and chips by the sea!
I am still suffering the trauma. During this hot summer had just bought an ice cream cornet on Paignton Sea front when, suddenly I felt the flap of wings and my hand was empty. I had not even had a lick. I could see the gull at the top of a lamp post with my ice cream in his beak laughing at me.
I am not new to the risk. I’ve lived here long enough to be well aware of the dangers of gulls. How was I so naïve?
One survey from Compare the Market suggested £171m worth of human food is stolen by gulls every year. This figure is a bit suspect. It was a survey of two thousand adults who were asked whether they had ever had food stolen or targeted at some point in their lives. This worked out at 71%. Who are the lucky 29% who have never been targeted? Do they all live in the village of Coton in the Elms in Derbyshire which is the village furthest from the sea in England and then go on holiday to the Alps? But targeted and stolen is not the same thing. The survey then applied the 71% .to the whole of the of UK population which worked out at 39m people. The number of people who had actually had food stolen by gulls was, according to their survey, 0.8%. They assumed that the stolen food was worth about £5.50 each making up the figure of £171 million.
Like many statistics these figures are dubious or, as a politician might say, “open to different interpretations”. Do they really nick £5.50 worth each time. My ice cream was not £5.50 neither is the odd chip. Of course, a full fish and chip meal could be up to £20 but I do not suppose that sea gulls understand about VAT, staff costs and the costs of fuel for our fishing boats.
We need to explain to these birds that they are called herring gulls for a reason. They are supposed to catch herring at sea not battered fish, chips and my ice cream. If they are going to eat fried food should I also give them a statin to lower their cholesterol?
The Herring gull or Larus Argentatus to use the Latin name, are intelligent thieves. It is far less work swooping on my ice cream than swooping into the sea for a fish. But it seems that their thieving is not completely random. Some research from the University of Sussex published in the Royal Society’s Biology Letters in 2023 suggested they copy humans. Here I have to admit that I am not an avid reader of the Royal Society’s Biology Letters or any other Royal Society letters.
Apparently gulls watch us going to Pier Point or the takeaways on Paignton sea front. They might keep watch on Three Degrees West at Oddicombe. A more up market gull might swoop on anyone eating on the terrace at The Cary Arms. The squark you hear may be sea gull language for “look at that burger. I fancy a bit of that”. They watch people and prefer our food. In one experiment two identical foods were available but the gulls were more likely to peck the one that humans had previously handled.
In another experiment people were given identical meals of different colours. It was found that 95% of the gulls then chose the colour the humans were eating.
Apparently not every herring gull is a villain. Research in Cornwall found that only 28% of gulls stole human’s food and so thieving may be limited to some individuals.
We also know that if you stare at a gull it is less likely to steal food. They wait until the person is not looking.
When someone suggests “that gull was watching me waiting for an opportunity to nick my chips” they are probably correct.
The takeaway message for anyone who does not want to lose their takeaway is to keep the food covered up and then stare at any suspicious gull.
These birds are intelligent and they share our beautiful seaside. They also do not have a good public relations department. They are very unpopular.
After loosing my ice cream from now on the only gulls I want to see are at Plainmoor.