Gulls are being 'demonised' say experts after 350 attacks reported - with birds being shot, mowed down by cars and thrown from roofs

By CLAIRE ELLIOT, SCOTTISH GENERAL NEWS REPORTER Published: 18:58, 16 July 2026 | Updated: 18:58, 16 July 2026 They are often seen as a menace as they dive-bomb unwary Scots. But gulls themselves are now coming under increasing attacks as a result of social media rhetoric and the constant ‘demonisation’ of the protected birds north of the Border, according to wildlife rescue experts. New Arc Wildlife Rescue in Aberdeenshire has attended more than 350 incidents involving gulls this year alone, responding to calls of birds being shot and deliberately mown down by cars, as well as nesting chicks being thrown from roofs. Some 280 of these incidents involved herring gulls, the most common species seen as pests in coastal towns and cities. Co-manager Paul Reynolds, who runs the Ellon-based facility with partner Morgane Ristic, said: ‘We get reports all the time of people witnessing somebody deliberately running them over. ‘And in the last few weeks we have had two confirmed instances of gulls being shot with air weapons and people witnessing gulls being attacked and kicked in the streets.’ It comes days after the Mail revealed that Britain’s first ‘gull ranger’ Patrick Stafford, 24, had started work to improve human and gull relations in Eyemouth. The unusual position, managed by the Berwickshire Marine Reserve, was created after several people suffered attacks from the birds, with seven child victims in August 2024. But Mr Reynolds said the ‘vitriolic’ response online to the conflict has led to the ‘persecution’ of the birds across the country. Gulls are being 'victimised' with people deliberately attacking them Britain's first Gull Rangers Patrick Safford is trying to improve relations between people and the birds He said this was ‘encouraging people to harm these animals’ and see it as ‘the societal norm to view them as a pest and as vermin and justify the negative action against them’. Only around half the gulls admitted to the New Arc centre survive, with most suffering wounds to their wings after being attacked, trapped or left to suffer tangled in netting. Mr Reynolds said videos and photos of distressed animals being shared online for ‘entertainment’ were adding to the situation. ‘That’s not to hide away from the fact that there is conflict,’ he added. ‘But it’s because of us that these gulls are in urban areas. They are not doing it to be deliberately annoying. They’re here because their natural habitat and food sources are being destroyed and the more easily and readily accessible food for them is people feeding them in their gardens, food in the street and landfill.’ Mr Reynolds said ‘the idea that the problem is getting worse in urban areas doesn’t really match the data’ as in recent decades the population of herring gulls had plummeted by 40 per cent. He said: ‘A lot of it is overinflated. I’m sure everybody has a story from going to the seaside and having an ice-cream or some chips attacked by a gull. But if you live in these areas, like I do, you soon learn to walk with your ice-cream so you don’t get it nicked out of your hands. It’s just part of living in these areas.’ Gull-proofing roofs and making sure bins are properly covered were some of the actions Mr Reynolds said people could take to avoid conflict.