BOOZY British seagulls have been spotted falling off rooftops, vomiting on people and even flying into cars. The winged menaces, who have hit the headlines this week after a “psycho” gull snatched chihuahua Gizmo in Devon, have been seen drinking the dregs of pint glasses up and down the country. But, like the rest of […]
BOOZY British seagulls have been spotted falling off rooftops, vomiting on people and even flying into cars.
The winged menaces, who have hit the headlines this week after a “psycho” gull snatched chihuahua Gizmo in Devon, have been seen drinking the dregs of pint glasses up and down the country.
But, like the rest of us, they can’t cope with too much of the stuff – and have been left stumbling around, confused and reeking of booze, after over-indulging.
And it appears boozed-up birds have been known to get so drunk they’re physically sick – just like humans.
Opportunistic gulls have been seen pinching pints, guzzling glasses of wine and pecking up the last few drops of booze from discarded bottles across the UK.
The increasingly aggressive nature of British seagulls has hit headlines with reports of dead dogs, pensioners pecked on the head by violent gulls and a postman left shaken by repeated attacks.
Adult seagulls also become incredibly protective at this time of year as their chicks get ready to flee the nest.
This month, a group of gulls were spotted making the most of half-empty wine and beer bottles left behind on a Bournemouth beach by louts along with a bottle of urine.
But on other occasions, they’ve viciously swiped booze out of revellers’ hands.
Fiona Heath, from Glasgow, Scotland, was gutted when a gull pinched her wine, writing on Twitter: “A seagull just came and drank my wine/knocked over my wine glass.”
Sharing a crying emoji, she added: “No more wine for me.”
The RSPCA, who treated nearly 30 sozzled birds in just two weeks last year said the creatures initially appeared to have a disease – “but then, after vomiting, most seem to recover”.
“The birds absolutely stink of alcohol when we collect them so now our vans smell like pubs,” charity officer Jo Daniel said at the time of the initial drunken outbreak last summer.
Footage, shared by the animal welfare organisation, shows a boozed-up gull tottering backwards, in scenes that will trigger déjà vu for anyone who’s had one too many shots.
Firefighter watch manager Virgil Turner went to rescue a drunken seagull in Dorset and was vomited on.
He told Devon Live: “When we arrived he [the gull] had already fallen off the roof, he was sitting shaking his head and he then tried to fly and he nearly hit me in the face.
“I caught him and he threw up all over me and he reeked of beer.”
In recent days and weeks, many gulls have been tanked up for another reason – the huge swarms of insects invading UK cities as part of the ‘Flying Ant Day’ phenomenon.
The ants – who venture out of their nests at this time of year to hunt for a mate – contain formic acid, which ‘stupefies’ seagulls and causes them to act like they’re on LSD.
It’s not surprising then that gulls have been seen “going crazy” in the skies, swooping on to dual carriageways, and reportedly acting more aggressively.
Some have even been hit and killed by unsuspecting drivers.
And it’s not just the ants that are fuelling the boozy birds.
Another Brit was left horrified after a gull took off with his beer, while a product manager was stunned when one of the birds sniffed out beer hidden in her CAKE in Brighton.
Many others have reported having their booze nicked by swooping gulls.
And now, as the UK’s seagulls hit beaches – and, increasingly, urban areas – on the country’s hottest day on record, it’s likely we’ll see more boozy antics from the scavengers.
The flying ant season usually happens in July, lasting up to two weeks.
It’s thought that the phenomenon is provoked by wet weather followed by hot, humid conditions – but boffins have suggested it might not be as predictable as first thought.
‘Flying Ant Day’ occurs when the ants sprout their wings and head off on what’s known as a “nuptial flight”.
During this time, the insects look around to find a mate, before landing to start a new colony.
Queen ants emerge from the nest to begin their nuptial flight with the male ants usually flying alongside.
The most common type of wflying ant is the black garden variety (the Lasius niger). Hose nests have a single queen and anything from 5,000 to 15,000 workers.
Councils as far inland as Worcestershire have even hired gull control officers to help keep the birds at bay, while some have called for a cull of the “vicious flying rats”.
Conservative councillor Alan Amos told Sun Online earlier this week that we need a nationwide gull cull to tackle the problem.
The Isle of Wight rescue organisation Wild Bird Aid posted images of six dead gulls on Facebook, saying it witnessed a driver purposefully drive over one of them.
The RSPB says that, by law, you can’t kill or try to control gulls without a licence. People who do so can face up to six months in prison or a £5,000 fine.
Recently, drivers were seen deliberately aiming for gulls – which are a protected species – as the boozed-up birds flew around dual carriageways.
This time they weren’t high on alcohol, but flying ants.
It is thought the ants’ formic acid reacts in the gulls’ stomach, making them appear drunk and more aggressive.
Last year, dozens of drunken gulls mysteriously fell off buildings and stumbled around disoriented in the South West.
It was initially thought the animals were intoxicated from left-over booze – but the RSPCA later discovered they had been drinking brewing waste.
The gulls’ drunken antics comes as the hunt for chihuahua Gizmo, snatched from his owner’s garden in Paignton, continues – with The Sun offering a £5,000 reward for anyone who finds the pup.
Devastated owner Rebecca Hill said: “I’m really grateful to The Sun and its readers for trying to find Gizmo. I can’t explain how painful it is to lose my ‘baby’ in such an awful way.”
