I would like you all to meet my friend Charlie. I tried to get a video of him onto this blog, but no go ! So a still picture will have to suffice , He is a bit of a character, a complete show off, but a bit nervous. He will gently take food from my hand but if any strangers are present, even my Grandkids, well , he is off like a flash . Lately , he has been bringing his lady friend, Chloe, round for lunch [ and breakfast and tea] and like the gentleman he isn't, bosses her about , unashamedly shows off in front of her and generally tries to eat as much of their meal as he can !! Gulls are scavengers and will eat almost anything. I suppose Charlie is the same but he does like his shredded wheat and milk eaten out of a bowl I hold for him. I must be as daft as he is !! Once I was feeding him out of a large plastic container and he grabbed it and flew off with it ....... probably thought it was a take away meal !!!! And don't leave full plastic rubbish bags out too soon for collection ....Peel's gulls will reduce them to shreds in a few seconds and spread the contents all over the place.
Charlie has been coming for two or three years now but their young will be leaving the nest soon and he may disappear for a few months . Gulls colonize different areas at different times of the year....maybe inland , maybe a different stretch of coastline. In the Spring they will nest and breed virtually anywhere, on cliffs, secluded beaches, rooftops ,even inland on the hills ...where they can attack new born lambs.. [ the Greater Black Backed Gulls are notorious for this ] Anyway, gulls are very protective of their young and will swoop down from a great height , missing your head by inches if you go too near to their nests . Quite scary ! ! By the way, Charlie is a herring gull, the most common variety of gull in the Isle of Man. There are many other another varieties, one of which is the COMMON gull, but strangely enough, this one is not so common !!
