Seagulls regularly spoil a pleasant vacation on the beach, snatching food right from the hands of tourists. Researchers from Saseka University discovered that birds steal not only when they are hungry. As natural kleptoparasites, they tend to observe humans to understand which foods are edible and which are not.
Scientists conducted an interesting experiment. They spread bright bags of chips on the beach and then sat down next to each other and began to eat from blue or green bags. In 95% of the cases, the seagulls imitated the researchers and ate from bags of the same color as the people. This suggests that they memorized and copied human behavior.
Some of the birds even ignored the available unguarded food on the beach and went straight for the chips that the researchers were eating. The reason is that seagulls are kleptoparasites, or simply put, thieves who steal food or prey from others. This is sometimes easier and less energy-consuming for animals than searching for food on their own.
Thousands of people eat chips and other snacks on the beaches every day, especially in the summer. And the seagulls have something to steal. Francisca Feist, a researcher from Sussex, said: “Watching how we eat is enough to influence seagulls’ foraging decisions. Surveillance strategies are important to them because one of their foraging strategies is kleptoparasitism or food theft. In non-urban areas, they can steal from other seagulls or other types of animals, and in urban areas, their target becomes a person.”
Protecting food from insidious seagulls is not easy, but there are methods. A study by scientists at the University of Exeter found that looking at birds can be one way to scare them away. Scientists put a bag of chips on the ground to see how long it would take for the birds to fly. Gulls that people watched took 21 seconds longer to pounce on the food. Those who were not watched grabbed the chips in seconds.
Lead study author Madeleine Goumas said: “Gulls are often seen as aggressive and willing to take food away from people. By watching them, people can save their lunch and reduce the number of negative contacts.” You can also try to disguise the chips as something else or cover them with a napkin.