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Politicians in a seagull-plagued city have made an unusual call for the nuisance birds to be given contraceptive pills. The hope is that the pills will make the birds less aggressive, as currently people are reporting having their food stolen and even being attacked by the creatures.
To try to curb the impact the birds are having in Dublin, councillor Aoibhinn Tormey suggested Ireland follow the example laid out by Brussels, where contraceptive corn pellets are fed to pigeons to stop a growing population, The Irish Sun reports.
According to Buzz, approximately 1,800 seagulls make Dublin their home.
The comments were made in response to complaints from businesses that the birds were attacking people and stealing their food, with one chipper suggesting it is having around 35 meals a week stolen.
The calls make reference to a plan put in place by the city council of Brussels in Belgium and the company Vets for Pigeons.
The plan sees the R-12 pigeon pill, a corn pellet that is both coated with a medicine that helps protect the animals against parasites and holds a contraceptive quality. The pill reportedly has no harmful environmental effects.
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However, people in Dublin have not all been keen on the suggestion.
In response to the calls, BirdWatch Ireland said that the suggestion was both flawed and “not thought out properly”.
Speaking to The Pat Kenny Show, Niall Hatch, Head of Communications and Development for BirdWatch Ireland said: “When it comes to the gulls – in particular the herring gull which is the main species complained about here, it’s actually a species which has been in serious decline in Ireland.
“It’s a protected species under Irish and under EU law and in fact, the population has declined so much that we’d be very loath to see actual moves taken by Government to try and limit their population yet further.
“I think when it comes to the contraceptive ideas, there are a lot of problems and flaws there.
“First of all, how do you ensure an adequate dosage or correct dosage for the birds? How do you ensure that other creatures aren’t going to eat them?
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