Sponsored by
GULLS FEED BABY DUCK TO YOUNG
DUCKLINGS are being attacked and killed by seagulls at Hailsham Common Pond, according to the pond warden.
He claims more than 50 ducklings and young moorhens have been snatched by seagulls who then feed the birds to their young.
Pond warden Philip Hobden has said it is happening in full view of children visiting the pond and this summer all but two of the new ducklings have been killed and eaten.
But a local wildlife expert has said the problem isn't entirely down to the seagulls and that too many ducklings are being born at the pond, which is making them an easy target.
Mr Hobden, said, "Seagulls are becoming a real problem at the pond and are eating all the ducklings.
"Forty-five ducklings were born this year and 43 of them have been eaten. We were able to rescue and look after one duckling — they are very difficult to catch — and the second survived on its own. We are getting a lot of complaints from the public because they see this happening and the children get quite upset.
"Because the ducklings are so independent they swim ahead of their mother and although she tries to call them back, that's when the gulls grab them.
"The ducks try their best to stop the gulls but they are generally outnumbered by the seagulls.
"It's the parent gulls that are doing it to feed their young."
Mr Hobden also said that seven young moorhens have been killed and this could have a long-term effect on the number of moorhens in the area.
Trevor Weeks, from the East Sussex Wildlife and Rescue Service, said that seagulls will snatch young birds but said there other predators in the area.
He said, "Seagulls will take young ducklings, in the same way other birds will, but other predators will also do this as well including cats, minks, foxes and herons, all of which are found near Hailsham Common Pond.
"Also a residential pond such as this cannot support 45 ducklings. It's partly a human-orientated problem which we see time and time again.
"People will feed the ducks and help to create the high numbers of ducklings, and they in turn attract the predators.
"They are part of a larger food chain and they are not all supposed to survive. It's just nature and we shouldn't interfere with it."
On Monday Mr Hobden told Hailsham Town Council's environment and leisure committee that he hopes to help the ducklings next year by storing some of the duck and moorhen eggs and incubating them in a safe area.
He said, "I would like to build a pen to keep them in and when they are about seven weeks old I could put them back into the pond because by that stage they will be too big for the gulls to take."
The idea was praised by town councillors who agreed in principle to support Mr Hobden's plan to incubate the eggs.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Eastbourne
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 23 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
