Residents urged to report seagull attacks after city centre swooping incidents

Members of the public are being asked to report seagull attacks following “coordinated behaviour” from the birds at an Easter egg hunt last weekend.

A Gull-Watch campaign has been launched by Inverness BID with the hopes of identifying “hotspots” in the city centre through members of the public reporting any gull-related incidents.

Janice Worthing, BID ambassador and operations coordinator, said that over the Easter weekend her team witnessed 16-gull related incidents at the city centre Great Easter Egg Hunt which it organises, attracting dozens of families.

She added: “This included frequent and coordinated behaviour from adult gulls, watching for opportunities, calling others in, and repeatedly swooping at and, in some cases, striking members of the public, including young children.”

As part of the campaign, Highland Council has launched a new reporting tool, where people can give a description, location and date of any incidents.

A Gull-Watch campaign has been launched by Inverness BID with the hopes of identifying “hotspots” in the city centre through members of the public reporting any gull-related incidents. Olivia Andrews/LDRS

A council spokesperson said: “The data collected will help determine whether patterns or hotspots exist, and whether certain impacts are more prevalent, such as aggressive gull behaviour related to chick protection or behaviours associated with food scavenging.

“As different behaviours require different mitigation approaches, meaningful and reliable data will support a targeted and proportionate approach to advising on appropriate mitigation measures to reduce negative interactions between gulls and people.”

The campaign has been launched to replace the gull management programme that was created by BID and Highland Council that has been suspended due to a lack of funding.

Tactics as part of the programme had included the use of bird scaring devices, lasering and hawking, in attempts to manage the city’s gull population.

Ms Worthing has warned that, as gull breeding season gets under way, “we expect conflict and, in some cases, injuries.

“Gulls are really quick and can strike suddenly and decisively,” she said.