Here on Portland we are seeing the seagulls get bigger and bigger over the years, they were never as big 20 years ago, this view for me was reinforced a couple of weeks ago when a friend come down to stay, having lived here 20 years ago during their teenage years, she mentioned they all seem massive now.
One of the big issues is the constant waste from us, these seagulls are happy to eat anything, they fight over anything and it doesn't help when people throw away food without a thought.
The wheelie bins, although ugly, lining all the streets have helped in some ways although due to councils stupid two week pick up they tend to smell more and attract more seagulls.
The decline of the fishing trade here will also have impacted on the seagulls, they no longer have boats to chase, instead relying on us and our waste.
I can understand non locals feeding the seagulls, it's a new thing for some of them seeing they live in cities.
But if possible, it's best to not feed the seagulls as it only encourages it them to rely on us more, plus they can get aggressive.
The little birds rarely show themselves as much these days, it's a hard job trying to feed them what they need when the seagulls bully them away. Pigeons have less fear of us so they don't care about the seagulls.
I wonder what they are like elsewhere, if they too have got bigger, because here on Portland they are definitely growing.
