Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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148. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she has concerns about the large number of herring gulls in coastal towns in north County Dublin and her plans to deal with them in a non-lethal manner. [18999/16]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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All wild birds, including seagulls, are protected under the Wildlife Acts 1976 to 2012 and the EU Birds Directive. However, there is a facility, under section 42 of the Wildlife Acts, for a person to obtain a permit, to take certain actions, including the scaring, capturing or killing of birds where they are causing serious damage to buildings and other structures, food (including human food products), agricultural crops, forestry plantations, other fauna, etc.

Applications for such permits are considered on a case by case basis by my Department.

The population of herring gulls has greatly declined in Ireland (by about 90%) over the past 40 years, probably due to improvements in managing landfill sites as well as other factors. Nonetheless there are substantial numbers in some coastal towns and cities, including north Dublin city and county. Herring gulls can be a nuisance because of noise, mainly in July and early August, and may steal food from people eating outdoors. In the latter case, the easy availability of food sources from litter or feeding by people may be contributing factors to the bird behaviour of concern.

Householders may take steps, outside the breeding season, to make roofs unsuitable for nesting and thereby reduce the presence of gulls.