Birth control proposal for nuisance gulls

Food would be laced with a specially-designed contraceptive pill for birds

A councillor has suggested using birth control as a means of limiting a local gull population.

Councillor Jill Desayrah said the number of gulls near Worcester's Elgar retail park had increased in the last year.

The birds have damaged locals' cars and homes, and disrupted people's sleep by screeching.

Desayrah said the rise in gulls in the area was "partly due" to their displacement from the city centre, where they had previously been a problem.

In July, a hawk was flown around Worcester city centre in an attempt to get the gulls to move on.

"I'm glad to see the city centre is more free of them, that's a good thing for everybody, but it's not good to see so many of them appear to be displaced here," she said.

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust said herring gulls were "declining at a national level" and whilst sensitive control of the birds "may be valid under some circumstances, it should be carried out as a last resort".

Councillor Jill Desayrah said "it's time to try and do something" about the gulls

One local who lives by the retail park said he would welcome a strategy to be put in place to manage the population.

He said: "We get a hell of a lot of gulls here, they leave a lot of mess everywhere and rip open bins.

"If the contraception keeps them under control, then by all means give it a try, but we don't want to stop the population."

Desayrah said she put the idea to Worcestershire Regulatory Services, which will then take the proposal to Natural England.

"I totally respect that this is a protected species and I certainly don't want to see them destroyed, but I think there is a balance here.

"The number of gulls in the retail park is affecting the way people are having to live. I think it's time to try and do something."

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust senior conservation officer Steve Bloomfield said herring gulls were "red listed as a bird of conservation concern in the UK".

He said the trust was "not aware of any birth control activities that are being used successfully or effectively in the UK at the moment, though we understand that it has been tried in Europe".

Mr Bloomfield said: "It’s important to note that any activity to control gulls in Worcester must be carried out under licence from Natural England and they are the ultimate arbiters of any methods used."

The BBC has approached Natural England to comment.