Dr Michelle Dickinson: nanotechnologist explains why lone seagulls are less likely to steal food

If you've ever had your lunch snatched by a seagull, you’re not alone. However, new research published in the journal Royal Society Open Science suggests that your chips might be safer than you think - if there is only one gull hanging around. 

Scientists have discovered that lone seagulls are far more cautious than those in a group. This behaviour is driven by a trait called neophobia, which means fear of the unknown. In a recent study by researchers at Ghent University, herring gulls were put to the test to see how brave they were when unfamiliar objects were placed near their food.

They found that when on their own, the gulls hesitated nearly three times longer to approach food than when they were in a group. Some lone gulls wouldn’t go near the food at all. But once in a flock, their confidence soared. The birds not only approached the food faster, they also spent more time hanging around it, even with strange objects nearby. 

The researchers concluded that being in a group helps gulls feel safer, making them more willing to take risks - like swooping in for your lunch.  

So, next time you spot a gull eyeing up your snack, count how many friends it has to calculate your risks.  

A previous study found that gulls prefer food they’ve seen humans handle, so clutching your sandwich tightly might actually make it more appealing to a gull, and research from the University of Exeter found that gulls take much longer to approach food if they feel watched, so giving a seagull a good hard stare might protect your food for long enough for another bite. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks EDB and.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Joining me now with her science study of the week
is doctor Michelle Dickinson. Good morning. I love the study
because I don't know if I have actually noticed before
that if there is one seagull loitering near you doesn't
tend to come close. But if there's some competition nearby
and there's sort of a flock of seagulls, you could
be inundated with them trying to check tech your fish

(00:36):
and chips. And scientists have worked out that there is
actually a reason for this.

Speaker 3 (00:40):
This is a lovely study. It's published this week in
the journal Royal Society Open Science. You can go read it.
It's open source. It's pretty fun to read because you
can see all the objects they put in the seagulls
to try and frighten them. But if anybody's ever had
their lunch or their chips snatched by a seagull, you
become wary next time you go to the beach. And
it's a beautiful sunny day here in Auckland, and I'm
heading to the beach after this with my kids, and

(01:01):
I'm going to have their sandwiches and you know the
seagulls are going to come over. But what I've learned
in this study is now you can assess your risk.
So this study was a study all about something called neophobia,
which is a trait that seagulls have, which is a
fear of the unknown. And they wanted to test whether
or not seagulls are afraid all the time or not.
So they did these wonderful and weird things with seagulls

(01:23):
and put weird objects in front of their food and
sort of studied when they would eat their food and
when they didn't. And what they found and this is
the science you can use at the beach today if
you're going, is if there is only one seagull on
their own, then the chances are they're not going to
steal your chips. They found that on their own girls
hesitated more than three times longer to even approach food

(01:44):
than compared to when they were in a group, and
most of them never even approached the food when they
were on their own.

Speaker 2 (01:50):
Can I ask a really dumb question, how do we
know that they have neophobia?

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Like?

Speaker 2 (01:56):
How you go? It's not like you can do a
survey and ask questions or fill out a questionnaire or
anything you know, and kind of get to the bottom
of Well.

Speaker 3 (02:02):
Luckily, this group of scientists, if you read the paper,
there's a whole beginning chapter about neophobia in other types
of animals. So they had studied that this is their thing.
Neophobia is their thing. They look at how animals behave
in groups versus on their own, and how brave or scared.

Speaker 2 (02:17):
Is it a term that we do just apply to
animals as well?

Speaker 3 (02:20):
I think it's a general term. This group who are
looking are just looking at in animals. So, and what
they showed is that although on their own, they never
approached the food or they've thought about it for a
long time. As soon as the girls were in a flock,
they came, they hung around for longer, they started eying
it up, and they had no fear in coming over
and taking the chips right out of your hand as

(02:41):
long as there was a group of seagulls nearby. So
here's the thing. If you're sitting at the beach and
there's a group of them, you're in trouble. If there's
just one, just leave them alone. But I know what
you're thinking. You go, well, that's not helpful, Michelle. What
if there's a group of girls nextly? So I'm going
to go through some previous research that I was led
to from this paper which I didn't know about. Number One,
seagirls prefer food that they have seen humans hold tightly. Two,

(03:04):
So you hold it on tightly to your sandwich or
your ice cream cone, then that's making it more appealing
for a girl to come and swipe it. Number Two
University of Exeter to publish this lovely study that said
seagulls will take longer to approach food if they feel
that they are being watched.

Speaker 1 (03:22):
So in the.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
Study, they got humans to give a seagull a really
good glare and the seagull didn't come near them. So
this is what you need to do. Don't hold your
ice cream too tight and just stare at all of
the girls looking at your food, or ideally just hang
up with one goal and then you're going to be
good for your lunch.

Speaker 2 (03:39):
That is so interesting. Thank you so much, Michelle. I
love what you come up. I'm very much appreciated for.

Speaker 1 (03:46):
More from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudgin, listen live
to News Talks. It'd be from nine am Sunday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio