Quiet neighborhood being terrorized by ‘psycho’ seagulls

By Adam Dutton and Matt Taylor via SWNS

Psycho seagulls have turned a quiet street into a “warzone” with night-long squawking and daily dive-bombing attacks .

Fed-up residents say they are being kept prisoners in their own homes by the angry birds guarding their rooftop nests.

Locals are often unable to sleep past 4 am and can’t use their gardens because the noise is so unbearable.

Dogwalkers have been swooped on while older people say they are too scared to go outside in the day during the nesting season.

To make matters worse, seagull poo covers cars and properties which sets like concrete.

Incredibly, the seagull menace is not making people’s lives a misery in a coastal town but in land-locked Worcester.

The city has long suffered with seagulls but residents in the Diglis area say their lives are being made intolerable.

Retired mechanic Philip John, 64, has lived in Mill Street for 12 years.
He said: “You can hear the birds squawking all day and all night.

“During the nesting season, the adult gulls are very aggressive.

"When the chicks fall out the nests they often land on the pavement below.

“I’ve know dogwalkers be attacked by the gulls which swoop down to try and retrieve their chicks.

"The gulls have turned this area into a warzone. It's not safe.

“The council know about the issue and have an officer responsible for seagull management but the birds are protected so they can’t do much.”

Hospital worker Becky Perkins, 32, has lived in nearby Portland Street for six months and says she is constantly washing bird poo off her car.

She said: “I’m quite laid back about the seagulls, they are just living their natural lives but I have noticed I’m washing my car a lot.

“The droppings do cover the car and it can be embarrassing going to work with a car covered in poo.

“The noise is bad at night. I like sleeping with the windows open but at this time of year that can be difficult because of the noise they make.

“I’ve heard some people say the gulls are like rats with wings but overall I’m unfazed by them.”

Café owner Lee Cotton, 58, says the seagulls can cause serious damage for businesses as well as residents.

He said: “The other day I was on my way to work when I felt a rush of wind above my head and it was a seagull divebombing me.

“They can be vicious so I’ve started wearing a hat when I walk outside now.

“They also pose a very serious health hazard. I have seen people eating on tables outside and their food was destroyed by seagulls.

“The gulls make an awful mess and in my café we are constantly going
outside to clear the area and the tables.

“I’d like to see the council take more action to control the population.”

Jim Robinson has been woken up countless times in the middle of the night in recent weeks due to the noise.

He said: "They're a real pain. My sleep has definitely been disrupted because at about 4 am they start up their racket.

"It means I have to shut my windows because they're so loud, even though it's warm.

"There's a block of flats on the junction of Mill Street and Portland Street, and there's one or two nests there and then another three or four further down.

"You hear the chicks first, and then the parents start their racket.

"I've not long moved back into the area, but I lived in Diglis five years ago and was never woken up by seagulls, so it's definitely a problem that has worsened."

One resident, who didn't wish to be named, said: "The seagulls are a bit of a menace, and the problem has got progressively worse."

"Only recently, my car was divebombed by seagulls because one of their chicks had fell out of the nest and onto the road in front of me."

Worcestershire County Councilor, Alan Amos, believes tougher measures should be taken.

He said: "This is exactly what I've predicted for years. Seagull numbers in Worcester are higher than they've ever been, and they're growing.

"It's not just a city center problem.

"We have to minimize their numbers, and I think a cull is the only way to do it."

A spokesperson for Worcester City Council said: "The city council does not have a statutory duty to deal with gulls nesting on private property, but we nevertheless do our best to offer support to residents and businesses to help make their properties gull-proof.

"Gulls are a protected species, so we do this work under license from Natural England.”

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