Q & A’s
What can you do to help?
Will the gulls be harmed by the flying of falcons
and hawks?
Ensure all waste is stored in wheelie bin and the lids
are secure at all times.
No, just the flying of the birds will act as a deterrent
and should encourage the gulls to look elsewhere to
nest. The birds are bred and trained to fly over the
nesting areas which will disturb the gulls looking to
nest.
By the time Gulls are noisy it’s because the eggs
have hatched and the parents are protecting the
young. It’s much better to prevent gulls nesting by
proofing your roof, further information can be found on
www.wiltshire.gov.uk/pestcontrol
Will this mean an end to the nuisance of gulls in
Devizes?
Reducing bird feeding in gardens during the spring
can reduce the food source for the gulls.
It is likely that in the first year the number of gulls will
remain the same. However as they are disturbed from
nesting the number of young should be less and this
will have a cumulative effect meaning less gulls
coming back to breed in 3 years’ time. The
programme is for 3 years and will have a long term
impact.
If gulls are nesting on a neighbours room the council
is unable to take any action, however talk to your
neighbours and see if they will consider proofing their
roofs.
Will I be able to see the Hawk and falcon flying?
Initially the birds will be flown every day for 2 weeks
and then this will reduce to weekly and fortnightly
visits depending on the time of year. The birds will be
flown over the industrial areas where is has been
identified they are nesting and the operator will also
vary the areas covered depending on surveys carried
out during the programme. You may see the birds
flying but the times of day and days they are flown will
vary.
You can contact Wiltshire Council
in the following ways:
Telephone: 0300 456 0100
Web: www.wiltshire.gov.uk
Information about Wiltshire Council services
can be made available on request in other
languages including BSL and formats such
as large print and audio. Please contact the
council by telephone 0300 456 0100,
or email [email protected]
Devizes Gull
Project ̶̵
Residents
What is the problem?
The number of gulls nesting around the Devizes
Garden Trading Estate and Hopton Industrial estates
has been steadily increasing over recent years. This
is leading to an increase in noise disturbance to local
residents and an increase in fouling and damage to
roof areas from nests blocking drainage and
ventilation systems etc. The gulls become aggressive
and noisy during the summer months when protecting
their young and this make it difficult to carry out
normal daily activities in this area at the time.
Meet the gulls
The gulls found in the Devizes area are mainly
Herring Gulls.
Once gulls reach adulthood at
the age of three they will return
to the same area where they
were born to breed.
Occasionally birds from outside
of the colony will arrive from as
far afield as Devon and Wales.
Mating activity will start in February when birds begin
to identify nesting sites, courting is in full swing by
March, and by April the nest will have been made.
Typically, eggs will be laid in late April or May. At this
time the gulls are not really noticeable to residents.
In June the eggs start to hatch, the adults become
very active and the young chicks call for food. This is
when the gulls become very noisy and can be heard
calling to each other. The noise levels and aggression
gets worse in July and August when the young birds
fledge (begin to fly).
At this time the adults are very aggressive and young
chicks are falling out of nests and roaming the streets.
What is the gull project for Devizes
Gulls like to nest on sloping roofs, away from
predators and the asbestos roofs in the area retain
the heat helping to keep them warm.
Following a petition taken to the Devizes Area Board
in November 2014 a gull working group was set up to
look at the problem of gulls in the Devizes Garden
Trading estate and Hopton Trading Estate area.
The law and gulls
All birds, eggs and their nests are protected under the
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The Department
for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and
Natural England can issue general licenses to control
gulls where there is a significant risk to public safety
or public health concerns. General nuisance,
disturbance and damage to property from gulls do not
fall under this criterion.
The Council can take some action to work with
premises where there is poor waste management or
housekeeping, but does not have the authority to take
enforcement action directly for the actual presence of
gulls.
It is the responsibility of land and property owners to
protect their property if they are in an area where gulls
nest. The council has no power to require anyone to
carry out bird proofing. Advice on bird proofing may
be found on www.wiltshire.gov.uk/pestcontrol.
A bird specialist was contacted for advice and it was
decided a programme to deter the gulls from nesting
by using Harris Hawks and Falcons to fly in this area.
In addition gull nest removal would be implemented
around these trading estates.
The gull programme is being jointly funded by
Roundway Parish Council, Devizes Area Board and
the Public Health team.
The programme will operate by flying Hawks and
Falcons initially daily for the first few weeks and then
on a weekly and fortnightly programme depending on
the activity at the various sites. The Hawks and
Falcons work by acting as a deterrent and changes
the habits of the gulls. This will encourage gulls not to
nest in this area.
The Falcons and Hawks are bred and trained for this
type of work and are handled by a trained operator.
Alongside the bird flying the nests will be removed
once a month during April, May and June. This will be
on the industrial estate where occupiers have granted
access and where roofs can be accessed safely using
cherry pickers. The gulls are likely to rebuild the nests
initially but with repeated nest removing it will make it
difficult to breed in this area.
The programme will run for a period of three years as
this is the time period when gulls return to where they
were born and bred.