Wings Of Plague!
The British, already under siege by rats are now under siege by rats. But these are the amphibious flying rats sometimes incorrectly called "Gulls". The Animal Uprising has big, big plans for Truro. They have unleashed a campaign of winged terror the likes of which the residents have ever seen.
A CAMPAIGN to tackle the problem of urban gulls has been launched by a city councillor who says the flying menace is a plague on the streets of Truro.
Rob Nolan says the gull's are becoming increasingly more daring and are now snatching pasties out of people's hands.
"Local government can't ignore the gulls forever," he said. "They've resorted to getting a trained falcon in at St Ives, but that doesn't appear to be working."
From the shop-fronts, where keeping the windows clean is proving to be impossible, to the piazza, where Coun Nolan has heard protests about gulls "repeatedly snatching pasties off people," the marauding birds are becoming more than just a nuisance.
Coun Nolan is asking for a focus on education. "The idea is to find out how they're dealing with the problem up country. There's no quick fix," he said. "We could just go around shooting all the gulls in Truro - but within a month, all the birds from Falmouth will have moved in."
The problems are bad enough around the town - but if a seagull chooses to make its nest in your home, there's no escape, said Coun Nolan.
"The gulls in St Ives are worst. They'll stand up to you there. But some people love them! They'll stand there feeding them in the garden. Often people are unaware of the problems they cause to others. The council needs to sit down and take specific action."
In 1996 Bristol had 2,000 breeding pairs. In 2006, 22,000. They forecast 218,000 by 2014. This is more than the current total UK gull population.
