Cottage Q&A
QUESTIONA rock formation at the mouth of our bay is home to a pair of nesting gulls that frequently attack passing boaters and harass the ospreys flying over the bay. I'm concerned that boaters might ride up onto the rocks trying to avoid the gulls. I'd like to remove the nests (the rock is Crown land) and would like to know about the permit process.
I. Callaghan, Apsley, Ont.
ANSWER
Your "hostile" gulls sense a threat to their young and are trying to keep perceived predators at bay. George Peck, a research associate in ornithology at the Royal Ontario Museum, is direct in his assessment: "Stay away from them; they have a perfect right to be there." And a legal right, too. Migratory birds are protected by the Migratory Birds Convention Act, reports Jack Hughes, a wildlife biologist with the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS). He adds that removing the eggs and nest of a migratory bird is a serious matter and recommends that cottagers simply give the birds a lot of space. "Young birds need the opportunity to grow and propagate." But if you feel the birds are a genuine hazard and that putting up a sign to warn boaters isn't enough, Hughes says individuals can apply to the CWS to remove nests. However, cottagers can only make applications related to nests on their private property; an individual cannot ask to move a nest on Crown land. So, in your case, you would have to contact your local Ministry of Natural Resources office, which would then have to apply to the CWS.
The wildlife service will not remove nests that contain chicks or eggs close to hatching unless serious human safety concerns leave no alternative. The CWS requires the applicant to first take less drastic steps to encourage birds to move, such as using whistles or other noisemakers to scare them away. If you do get the go-ahead, the CWS will provide you with detailed instructions, including how to dispose of a nest and eggs - be respectful and bury any eggs on site. And the ospreys? Peck says the gulls won't affect their population or their habitat. "The ospreys won't be bothered in the least. They are big, strong predators."
Steve Brearton
* Published in the September/October 2006 issue of Cottage Life
