Seagulls have adapted to school holidays to forage for students’ food, study finds

Anyone used to a walk by the sea or a lunch in the park might already know that gulls are cunning predators when it comes to snatching a sandwich or an ice cream.

Now, a study has confirmed that birds do in fact know exactly when and where it’s best to forage for human food.

Scientists fitted the gulls with GPS backpacks to reveal how fine-tuned they were for foraging in built-up areas.

In the University of Bristol study, tracking backpacks were fitted to 12 small black-backed gulls to record their behavior.

The number of gulls at three different locations in the city – a public park, a school and a waste disposal center – was also observed.

The results showed that the foraging habits of the birds corresponded closely to the time of school holidays and the opening and closing times of the dump.

The number of gulls present at the school was highest at 11:15 a.m. and 12:45 p.m., which coincided with the school lunch break.

Both at the school and at the rubbish tip, gulls have been observed waiting on surrounding rooftops before school holidays and before waste is unloaded, implying that they were specifically waiting there for food to become available.

Researchers said fewer gulls were present at the waste disposal site on weekends, when there were fewer garbage truck depots.

Their activity in the public park seemed to correlate with the availability of natural food sources, such as insects and earthworms.

The findings, published in Ibis: the international journal of avian sciencessuggest that gulls have the behavioral flexibility to adapt their foraging behavior to human schedules.

Gulls, according to the study authors, are an example of a species that thrives in cities, which is thought to be the result of several factors, including higher temperatures, fewer predators, many sites of nesting and predictable feeding conditions.

Lead author Dr Anouk Spelt said: “Our data showed that gulls were not only present in large numbers during lunchtime to feed on leftovers, but also just before school started and during the first recess when the students had their snack.

“Similarly, at the dump, gulls were present in greater numbers on weekdays when the dump was open and trucks were unloading food waste.

“Although everyone has seen or seen gulls stealing food from people in the parks, our gulls have mainly gone to park early in the morning, and this may be because earthworms and insects are present. in greater numbers during these early hours.”

Dr Shane Windsor, co-author of the study, added: “With this study in Bristol, we have shown that gulls in cities are able to adapt their foraging schedule to make the most of resources. food depending on availability.

“Some gulls even used all three feeding grounds in the same day, suggesting they may be tracking availability to optimize their energy intake.

“These results highlight the behavioral flexibility of gulls and their ability to adapt to artificial environments and the schedules of urban life.”