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Sparks

A British Man Is Living Out the Plot of ‘The Birds’

“I was simply not prepared for the serious impact that these creatures have upon me.”

Charu Sinha •
09/25/2023
A seagull attack.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

The human fear of birds is a primal one, as Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, Olivia Rodrigo, and now, a long-suffering resident of the British town of Bath, know all too well. The man, identified only as Gavin in a BBC article about the issue, has lodged a formal complaint against the seagulls plaguing his housing development, claiming the birds have made it “impossible to escape sleep deprivation.”

"I was simply not prepared for the serious impact that these creatures have upon me,” the embattled resident revealed last week in a statement to the Bath & North East Somerset Council. Gavin went on to explain that there are “often 10 or 12 adult gulls” on the roof of the building adjacent to his apartment. He added that his “health and wellbeing have suffered from lack of sleep, anxiety, and being unable to concentrate with windows open, even in the stifling heat of summer.”

The gulls have also been exhibiting increasingly aggressive behavior, Gavin claims. "I had a sandwich snatched from my hand, drawing blood; I have been hit on the head by a gull while walking; and I have witnessed a gull take ducklings from the canal."

This is only the latest battle in the ongoing war between the human and avian residents of Bath. Per an ITV report last year, there are nearly a thousand breeding pairs of gulls in the historic city, whose elaborate Georgian architecture provides the perfect perch for the birds to nest. “We’ve created big beaches in the skies for them,” Tony Whitehead, a spokesman for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds explained to SomersetLive. “They are attracted to urban areas because of really safe nesting places.”

Despite noise complaints and even attacks on humans, it remains difficult to legally kill the birds or destroy their nests, as all species of gull are protected under Britain’s Wildlife and Countryside Act. The city of Bath, however, has obtained special permissions to remove nests and eggs if they could show “that nonlethal methods had failed and that it was necessary for public protection.” Godspeed to Gavin, and prayers for a swift and nonviolent resolution.

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Charu Sinha profile image

Charu Sinha

Charu Sinha is the audience editor at Heatmap. She was previously a news writer at Vulture, where she covered arts and culture. She has also written for Netflix, iHeartMedia, and NPR.

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Sparks

The Mad Dash to Lock Down Biden’s Final Climate Dollars

Companies are racing to finish the paperwork on their Department of Energy loans.

Katie Brigham •
12/05/2024
A clock and money.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

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The acceleration represents a clear push by the outgoing Biden administration to get money out the door before President-elect Donald Trump, who has threatened to hollow out much of the Department of Energy, takes office. Still, there’s a good chance these recent conditional commitments won’t become final before the new administration takes office, as that process involves checking a series of nontrivial boxes that include performing due diligence, addressing or mitigating various project risks, and negotiating financing terms. And if the deals aren’t finalized before Trump takes office, they’re at risk of being paused or cancelled altogether, something the DOE considers unwise, to put it lightly.

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Treasury Finalizes Another IRA Tax Credit Before You Know What

The expanded investment tax credit rules are out.

Matthew Zeitlin •
12/04/2024
The Treasury Department building.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

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Trump’s OMB Pick Wants to Purge the Government of ‘Climate Fanaticism’

Re-meet the once and future director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought.

Jeva Lange •
11/23/2024
Russ Vought.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images, Library of Congress

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