Britain’s ‘Barbados’ seaside resort ‘covered in poo’ and terrorised by ‘hooligan’ seagulls
Scarborough, like many UK seaside towns, has enjoyed a bit of a boost over the past few years as lockdowns and economic woes have encouraged many Brits to swap foreign holidays for something closer to home.
But not everyone who visits the resort affectionately known as “Scarbados” comes away satisfied.
In particular, tourists have complained about the predatory “hooligan” seagulls, who are infamous for divebombing visitors to steal their chips, building smelly nests and leaving windows caked in bird droppings.
READ MORE: Seagulls ‘that own village’ unleash attacks on locals who now need tetanus shots
Scarborough Council says the town has experienced problems with birds swooping at humans for a number of years, with “gull muggings” a common problem during breeding season.
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“Herring gulls are territorial and very protective of their offspring in the breeding season,” a spokesman told Daily Star Online.
“Their natural instincts can give rise to incidents reported as ‘gull muggings’, where the birds swoop down at or near people or sometimes attempt to take food that they have spotted.”
Council sources say the gulls’ behaviour has been encouraged by “stupid” people who feed them.
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(Image: Peter Harbour)
Labour cabinet member Councillor Tony Randerson explained that the “muggings” had been encouraged by human activity: “They have become scavenging birds. They have got used to humans feeding them.
“That’s the main problem. It’s the humans that are to blame, it’s not the seagulls’ fault.
Ros Fox, 69, a retired B&B owner, and her husband Tom, 70, a former council leader, say they can no longer eat outdoors at their property near the seafront.
“They know when it’s feeding time,” Ros told the Mirror. “Two come and perch at my barbecue when we are eating.”
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Some locals have gone too far in trying to combat the gulls.
Just last week, 43-year-old Scarborough man Richard Kitching was given a 32 week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, after being caught on CCTV drunkenly grabbing a seagull and smashing it against a wall.
More than one Tripadvisor reviewer complained about the winged menace.
“Word of warning,” one wrote, “Seagulls attack, the council do little more than put up signs saying do not feed the birds, this isn’t a problem as they attack and help themselves to whatever your eating with no fear.”
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Another, who thought that the Yorkshire town’s heyday was “100 years ago and very little has changed” wrote that the seafront is “full of screaming children, the most irritating seagulls attacking you and your stuff and [the]donkey ride!
“[The donkeys] smell and are p*****g on the beach where children are playing! morons leaving stuff close to the sea forgetting (should say not knowing) about the tides, so the beach is full of abandoned blankets and any sort of trash you can imagine. what a sad and poor place…”
Another serious issue flagged up by TripAdvisor reviewers is the number of dogs running up and down the beach, and leaving prodigious amounts of poo behind as they do so.
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One said: “Dog poo all over North Bay Beach, which is disgusting… I don’t mind dogs being on beach as I have two, but the filthy owners need to clean their mess up”.
Another reviewer suggested a draconian penalty for dog owners who ignored the rules: “I am seriously vexed that once again one of the most beautiful beaches in the area is spoiled by a minority of dog owners who blatantly ignore the signs to NOT bring their dogs on the beach.
“They do so and some don’t even pick up the mess. Such Neanderthal behaviour means the only punishment they need is to have said excrement smeared all over their face like some kind of new age anti-ageing cream.
“Scarborough Borough Council who are about as useful as a limp lettuce, say to use pooper scoopers but don’t enforce said rules. It is a real shame in my opinion”.
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