Nature Scot rules protecting herring gulls are ‘leaving Moray residents in tears’
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A local pest control company says greater protection for herring gulls is stopping them from dealing with problem birds.
Emma and Rob Teasdale of Specialist Vermin Control claim that the rules for removing eggs and nests have been made too strict.
An application for a licence can only be made once a nest has already been built – and it can take NatureScot up to four weeks to process the paperwork.
However the gestation period for herring gulls is three weeks and once the chicks have hatched they cannot legally be removed.
The resulting situation is said to have reduced some frustrated Moray residents to tears.
Meanwhile others are taking the law into their own hands.
Rob said: “NatureScot keeps saying this is not a health and safety issue, but we had an elderly client who fell and broke her leg after she was swooped by a seagull.
“Because of NatureScot’s rules, folk are just doing it themselves.”
Emma believes the urban gull population has increased dramatically since the restrictions were tightened.
She said: “I think the number has grown threefold since we were stopped from shooting them three years ago.
“It’s getting to the stage where people are crying and sobbing.
“If it was a dog terrorising children and elderly ladies it would be put down.
“Most pest controllers are animal lovers – but if these animals are not in the right place they have to be culled.
“How can a person be less important than a bird’s life?”
The Elgin Common Good Fund has spent £27,000 this year on sonar devices and other measures to try address the problem.
John Divers (Elgin South, Labour) said: “You can’t apply for a licence until the nest is down.
“Then they lay their eggs and the chicks hatch in 21 days. But it can take 28 days to to process the licence, so what’s the point?
“The council has spent thousands of pounds trying to tackle this problem. It feels as if we’ve had our hands tied behind our backs.”
A spokesperson for NatureScot said license applications where health and safety was an issue were dealt with first.
They added: “We know that gulls protecting their chicks can be frightening.
“Processing can take up to 28 days, and we treat health and safety applications as a priority, but in most instances it does not take this long and we try to keep processing times as short as possible.
“We strive to ensure that everyone, regardless of access or ability, is entitled to apply and – if appropriate – receive a licence.
“We know that gulls can sometimes cause disturbance and frustration for people living in our towns and cities.”
“But the ongoing declines in gull species in Scotland … is very concerning, so it’s vital we get the balance right between conservation and protection of species and safeguarding people from health and safety risk.”
