Library users suffer gull menace

The gull was nesting on a lamppost before it found the chimney

A broody seagull is terrorising library users in a landlocked mid Wales town, some 40 miles from the sea.

One man has reported having to "zigzag like a drunk" to avoid being hit when attacked in the street four times.

The gull, which has two chicks, has nested on a house chimney opposite the library in Newtown, Powys.

Library assistant Kerry Thomas, said: "She's a regular. She used to sit on the lamppost outside and dive-bomb people from there."

The gull is targeting pedestrians and library users at the junction of New Road and Park Street.

Several people have complained of being dive-bombed by the gulls.

We've had someone come in who has been dive-bombed and someone who has seen someone being dive-bombed Kerry Jones, library assistant

One man told BBC Wales: "I was just walking round from the library along the pavement when one of the gulls swooped down just over the top of my head, making a pecking attempt.

"I carried on down the road and it made three other attempts to dive bomb me. I was zig-zagging across the pavement like a drunken man.

"It's a little unusual to have this so far inland. It's certainly unusual here."

But library assistant Kerry Jones said the bird seems to have made the area her home.

'Dive-bombed'

She said: "We've had it before. It's quite a regular occurrence. It's only in the last couple of days that we've had people complaining about it.

"We've had someone come in who has been dive-bombed and someone who has seen someone being dive-bombed.

"We had a lot of people comment on the chicks. She's got two chicks right on top of the chimney. We can see them."

Ms Jones said the gull later seemed "a bit tired after all the attention and has stopped dive-bombing for now".

RSPB Cymru said it was "not unsympathetic" to the problems gulls could cause but favoured "non-lethal solutions" such as netting to stop them roosting on buildings.

Dana Thomas said: "By choosing to live with us they do become very bold and as they are quite large birds they can be very intimidating.

"They will only dive-bomb people if they feel threatened, or if they feel the need to protect their young which could be the case in mid Wales.

'Food litter'

"If they are breeding and have young chicks then it is in their instinct to protect their young. Sometimes this type of behaviour can lead to injury.

"The numbers of herring gulls and black-backed gulls are increasing in urban areas, however both species have declined dramatically across the UK with herring gulls now on the red list of Birds of Conservation Concern (2009)."

The assembly government said in a statement: "Action to control seagulls is the responsibility of individual local authorities, for which the Welsh Assembly Government can provide licences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

"In order to minimise the disruption caused by seagulls the public are advised to control food litter and feeding. Large birds of prey can be an effective means of control in urban areas and this again would be a matter for local authorities.

"If this course of action were to be taken, either the local authority or the person flying the bird would require a licence which can be obtained from the Welsh Assembly Government, as killing by using a bird of prey is an offence unless licensed."