A COUNCILLOR in a town which is being plagued by 'flying rodents' has issued a desperate plea to residents to stop feeding them.

Cllr Norman Bishop-Rowe, of Ulverston Town Council, made the request following a meeting of the council when he and colleagues agreed unanimously to try and educate local people about the problem in the town.

"We want to work with residents and environmental health to try and persuade people not to feed them," he explained.

"We'll be asking South Lakeland District Council (SLDC) for assistance with the problem."

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The decision was made at a council meeting on Monday, after being tabled for discussion following the last meeting in October.

Councillors were presented with two options for dealing with the protected species: providing some households with a £150 grant to install gull-proof nets or asking SLDC's environmental health and streetcare officers to provide signage and information discouraging people from feeding the birds.

They went with the latter after it was explained the first would be too costly.

"They're a protected species so we have to be careful what we do," continued Cllr Bishop-Rowe.

"But we can ask people not to feed them and not to encourage them.

"People throw down food - sometimes as litter and sometimes deliberately to feed the gulls - and they're thriving."

He said, as a result, the noise from the birds has become 'unbearable' and during summer months can begin as early as 3.30am and continue until well after dusk.

Seagulls also leave excrement on buildings, cars and washing which is hung outside - and he said a cleaner at one of Ulverston's social clubs has revealed she has to wash its front door every single day in summer.

Town clerk Jayne Kendall is now set to write to SLDC to ask for assistance in putting up signs and information, which will hopefully discourage people from feeding the birds and encourage them to dispose of waste properly.

"It's a simple message: please do not feed them," added Cllr Bishop-Rowe.

"They're flying rodents. If they'd got long tails and grey fur people would be screaming like mad, but seagulls spread the same amount of diseases."