Lowestoft town council to have dedicated kittiwake officer

Global numbers of kittiwakes have fallen by 40% since the 1970s

A council has agree to part-fund the salary of a dedicated officer to help a town's businesses see an endangered seabird as an "asset not a pest".

Kittiwakes had created issues due to the noise and mess they can make in Lowestoft, Suffolk.

Suffolk Wildlife Trust (SWT) said the problem came to a head last summer when the birds got caught up in netting put up by businesses on some buildings.

The town council said the officer would help "minimise and mitigate conflict".

Town councillor Andy Pearce said: "A lot of local people love the kittiwakes, but there's conflict particularly with local businesses; the noise is an issue and so is the mess.

"The whole purpose of the kittiwake officer is that the birds are an asset and not a pest, and to work with local residents and businesses on ways to minimise and mitigate the conflict between them."

Kittiwakes are on the conservation "red list" and global numbers have fallen by 40% since the 1970s.

SWT said the kittiwakes in Lowestoft had shown just how adaptable they were by nesting on window ledges and other architectural appendages that provide similar terrain to cliffs.

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Rupert Masefield, SWT's planning and advocacy manager, said: "We should be celebrating this as something that brings wildlife right into where people are living.

"Things really came to a head when members of the public saw kittiwakes entangled in netting.

"Businesses got flack for putting netting up on their buildings."

He said one company took down the netting and wooden nesting platforms were installed instead.

"We hope we'll be able to work with building owners and businesses to deliver those kinds of solutions so that kittiwakes can nest in places where they are not going to be causing problems," added Mr Masefield.