Teer 0 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 Hi lads, I thought maybe you could help me. The question is simple: Is it legal to shoot Herring Gull in Scotland because they cause a lot of damage (not mentioning the mess they make) at my workplace (fish farm, therefore the damage is done to the nets, boats, etc.)? I've searched the forum but to no result. Also I've read through the general licenses for Scotland and only found them mentioned in the "Licence to protect public health, public safety and prevent the spread of disease". The problem is, that I don't think they spread disease which is transferable to humans (as long as it isn't avian flu ), I can't see how they could be a safety issue to my fellow colleagues and me (they don't really attack us or anything haha) and I can't see how they could cause any other trouble with health (as long as their sh*t which is everywhere can't cause health problems). So the only reasons I have to shoot them is causing a lot of damage and mess but that isn't listed anywhere in the general license mentioned above, therefore it's illegal. Do you know of any other way of obtaining a license or permit to control (shoot) them? Because they really are a bother at my workplace and there is hundreds of them but we don't have a way of getting rid of them (even when scared, they will return the same hour). Any help and advice appreciated. Cheers, Tomek. Quote Link to post
scalesntails 118 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 Pretty sure there are some types of gull you can shoot and some you can't. Just be aware they are f**kers to kill with an air rifle. Their feathers are very thick so only perfect head shots will do. Quote Link to post
Rake aboot 4,936 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 TBH bud, If you pushed it you could cull under public health reasons(shit getting into food chain, covering frequently used machinery etc etc) BUT it`s a fish farm ! shoot 1 and 10 will replace it mate,, you`d be fighting a losing battle, Quote Link to post
lamaha 7 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 Just checked the pinned post at the top of this section and the Herring Gull has been removed from English and Scottish general liecence and the black backed gull is in. Seems daft as its Herring gulls down here that are the niusense, but there you go! You can apply for a special liecence, but lots of hoops to jump through. Quote Link to post
Rake aboot 4,936 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/1221/0109519.pdf Herring Gull is still on in Scotland Losing battle though! Quote Link to post
Teer 0 Posted February 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 Hey guys, Thanks for the replies. I know it might seem a losing battle, but at the location my fishfarm is situated at there is only a limited number of Gulls and there isn't really anywhere for them to come from (it's quite far away from the towns and cities and we know that they'll find more food in a town that they will on a fishfarm. Apart from fish food pellets and occasional dead fish there isn't much), so I guess if you push it really hard and decrease their numbers they might learn that it isn't safe for them to come there or their population there will just decrease to such a level that they will not cause so much trouble in which case we could just leave them be. Anyway thanks for help again, I'll make sure whether it's legal or not and under what circumstances and then we'll see Cheers, Tomek. Ps. my mum (who's an ichthyologist - something to do with fish xD)also told me that they might spread disease among the fish, therefore causing a potential risk of heavy losses to the crop, they could also spread some diseases from cage to cage I guess if they picked up dead fish remains (potentially infected with something) and dropped it in another cage. Quote Link to post
ratattack 111 Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 (edited) You will need to prove all other avenues of control have been tried before shooting any gulls. Bird scarers or A large hawk flown regularly by a bird handler would be a useful start. An airgun is not suitable for large scale culling of large gulls. You need to try the hawk really. There is bound to be someone who flys hawks that can do this for you, it will be the only real viable option. Diseases can be spread by the droppings along with a slip hazard when they are wet, the birds can become agressive during breeding season too. good reasons to cull or at least limit their time on site. Edited February 10, 2011 by ratattack Quote Link to post
Teer 0 Posted February 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 You will need to prove all other avenues of control have been tried before shooting any gulls. Bird scarers or A large hawk flown regularly by a bird handler would be a useful start. An airgun is not suitable for large scale culling of large gulls. You need to try the hawk really. There is bound to be someone who flys hawks that can do this for you, it will be the only real viable option. Diseases can be spread by the droppings along with a slip hazard when they are wet, the birds can become agressive during breeding season too. good reasons to cull or at least limit their time on site. The general license also mentions that if the authorised person thinks that appropriate non-lethal methods are impracticable then the use of lethal force is allowed. In my opinion, all the hassle with finding a bird handler, transporting him to and from the site, providing constant watch for him (guests to the workplace aren't allowed to stay on the barge alone), not mentioning all the paperwork that bringing a guest in involves and paying him is quite impracticable, I doubt bird scarer would work either as they do what they usually do despite the fact that some of us are near the cage or at the cage. And as I am at the site everyday, I could do a large portion of controlling their population at my breaks, and I even think the manager would be happy to give me some extra time for that. Oh and by the way it says in the license that you have to report the number of Herring Gulls taken, the location, reasons, etc. etc. because it is now a critically endangered (on the so called Red List) species. Everyday when I travel from the town, then across the bay and between the islands to get to my workplace I see hundreds and hundreds of them. So I ask...how can they be endangered if I can see so many of them everyday? They're all over Scotland and GB generally. And Wikipedia states that they're of Least Concern by risk of extinction. Ehh....I hate all these legal issues...Why couldn't it be just nice and simple Cheers, Tomek. Ps. I know they've got really thick layer of feathers, but well placed head shot from an air gun will do. I wouldn't even try chest shots. Ps2. Just checked a few resources and they all say that Herring gull (the European one) has a conservation status of least concern. Quote Link to post
ratattack 111 Posted February 11, 2011 Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 I will say it again, an airgun is NOT suitable for the LARGE SCALE culling that you will need to do if you hope to make any impact on the population. A shotgun with suitable cartridges is the only way to get numbers down if you intend to shoot them. Shooting during your breaks won't even touch the population if it's as bad as you say it is A gull distress call/ scarer will work to an extent. Quote Link to post
Teer 0 Posted February 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 Oh sorry mate, I thought you said it's not suitable because it's not powerful enough to kill. Right, I get you now. And I think you might be right. Eeeh.... Cheers, Tomek. Quote Link to post
ratattack 111 Posted February 11, 2011 Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 Oh sorry mate, I thought you said it's not suitable because it's not powerful enough to kill. Right, I get you now. And I think you might be right. Eeeh.... Cheers, Tomek. Perfectly ok for the odd gull now and again just not for removing loads. Quote Link to post
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