Gulls are intelligent, vital birds that deserve our protection, not scorn [Salon]

Biological conservation efforts typically gravitate toward the more charismatic species. Save the pandas is a more popular slogan than save the earthworms, and most people likely care more about protecting flowers than a rare grass or fungi.

For birds, eagles and condors are beloved poster children of environmental movements. But for gulls — sometimes erroneously called “seagulls,” though they are not exclusive to the ocean — they are described as nuisances and pests, which experts say couldn’t be further from the truth. Nonetheless, public sentiment against gulls is often strong.

After the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 protected gulls from hunting and egg harvesting in the U.S., populations rebounded. Around the same time, beach recreation was rising in popularity across the world. Complaints about gulls followed, says John Anderson, professor of ecology at the College of the Atlantic, who studies seabirds.