Herring gull aversion to gaze in urban and rural human settlements
Published in Journal of Animal Behaviour, 2020
Recommended citation: Goumas, Madeleine. (2020). "Paper Title Number 1." Journal 1. 1(1). https://tommycollins1.github.io/files/gull-behaviour-across-urban-locations.pdf
Human populations and urban settlements are expanding. As this happens, wild animals are often exposed to humans.
But how are humans – and human urban-locations – affecting species of wild and culturally relevant birds? How do animals change behaviours to adapt to urban environments and does this differ across developmental stages?
We found that herring gulls living in built-up areas differ greatly in their wariness of humans. We tested whether age and urbanization affected gulls’ aversion to human gaze. Urban herring gulls could be approached more closely than their rural counterparts. However, gulls in urban and rural areas fled sooner if a person was looking at them. Gulls may not need extensive exposure to humans to be wary of human eye contact.
Recommended citation: Goumas, Madeleine. (2009). “Herring gull aversion to gaze in urban and rural human settlements” Journal of Animal Behaviour . 168(2020):83-88. Volume 168, October 2020, Pages 83-88