Seagulls, the birds known by the BBC as “Nature’s Boldest Thieves,” continue their maniacal reign of terror over coastline restaurants. In the past, restaurants have provided patrons with water guns in hopes of scaring the gulls, but it’s safe to say that those efforts were inadequate. As a result, Boston restaurants recently enacted new anti-Seagull policies, but the results have been less than satisfactory.
Several cities across the globe are dealing with seagull-led robberies, working diligently to combat the efforts of these feathered flyers to steal from customers. That said, it seems that the seagulls continue to have the upper wing. According to the Boston Globe, Sullivan’s, a restaurant in East Boston, has even closed its outdoor seating, and a restaurant in Gloucester, AnneMarie’s Surfside, has signs around their patio that read “not responsible for seagull food theft.” Seagulls were stealing food and knocking over meals so regularly that Annemarie’s could no longer afford the cost of replacing dropped food and ice cream.
Anti-seagull restaurants regulations
Outside of water guns, restaurants have worked to make their outdoor seating areas less comfortable for seagulls, but the majority of defense efforts have ended in restaurants closing their outdoor seating areas. Seagulls 1. Humans 0.
How to protect your food from a seagull
Anytime you feed seagulls, you’re propagating this epidemic. Don’t help along their tomfoolery for the love of all that’s good in this world.
On a less dramatic note, if you see a seagull scouting out your meal, you know…casing the joint, stare intently into their eyes. This will apparently scare them (here’s the explainer article). The downside is, they might mistake your intense eye contact for flirting. I don’t know about you, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take.