New deterrents to scare off gulls are poised to be deployed by Moray Council in a £600,000 project.
The birds are currently beginning to pair up ahead of mating and nesting season across the region.
Summer then traditionally brings additional noise and mess from them with the added nuisance of parents becoming more territorial about where they have nested.
In recent years Moray Council has invested in deterrents in specific areas where there is a known problem.
What Moray Council has in store for gulls this year
Moray Council has awarded two contracts totalling £657,870 to Banff-based Specialist Vermin Control for gull deterrents.
The Aberdeenshire firm has removed nests, used lasers and sonic deterrents in previous years being hired by the authority.
A larger £344,000 contract covers residential property while a smaller £313,000 contract is specifically for commercial premises.
Previous years have included both council-owned and privately-owned homes. It is not known what this year’s project will cover.
The contract notice states the work will be “both preventative and reactive”, meaning it will try and stop gulls nesting in some locations as well as respond to areas where gulls are already a nuisance.
Locations across Moray will be included in the project.
Moray Council has been contacted to comment.
Gulls: Friends or foes?
Few things provoke a more polarising debate in the north-east than the annual arrival of gulls during nesting season.
Some complain about the noise and mess from the birds while dodging the protective parents protecting their chicks.
However, are happy to do their bit for the protected herring gull species, which is on the RSPB’s “red list” due to their declining numbers.
The protected status of the birds means property owners are limited in the actions they can take once the birds have nested.
Preventative measures including spikes, nets and now lasers are regularly used to prevent the gulls from settling in the first place.
Conversation