Why do seagulls become so much more aggressive in the springtime? 

Never the best behaved of wildlife, people who live around coastal areas regularly report they become even bolder as soon as the temperature begins to rise.

Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, Rentokil Pest Control manager Colm Moore said the birds act up because they are defending their babies.

“The nesting season is a pretty problematic time,” he said.

“It’s like any adult, any parent looking after their young, they will defend them to the nth degree.

“So, it’s essentially 28 days for the eggs to hatch and for the fledgling, depending on the species, another 30-40 days.

“So, you really have April to June period of time when these birds can get quite aggressive because they’re defending their nests.”

Most of the year, a very bold seagull might try and steal some of the food you have in your hand but in spring they can even attack people.

“They’ll mob you,” Mr Moore warned.

“They will actually attack you, they’ll dive bomb.

“There’s many times we’re been on roofs ourselves doing some work and we come across a nest and it happens to be that period of time and what they do is they’ll attack you.”

A seagull trying to protect its chicks. Picture by: Mauricio Abreu / Alamy Stock Photo

Seagulls are a protected species under Ireland’s  Wildlife Act and the EU Birds Directive - meaning they cannot be culled - but there are things you can do to stop them nesting.

“It really is about preventative measures - things like keeping them out, keeping them off the buildings,” Mr Moore said.

“So, you can use netting - so that you’re making the building that much more inhospitable to land.

“There’s also scaring devices where it listens to the bird's species and then responds with an alarm call.”

There are seven seagull species native to Ireland.

Main image: A sea gull attacks woman. Picture by: Alamy.com