THEY are a perilous menace that stalk the seaside.
Hunting down chips to steal and children to frighten, they have become a plague to the people of Bridlington.
But now, an unlikely band of heroes have been soaring the skies to scare off the much-feared seagull.
Teenager Holly Raper and her team of birds, including a peregrine falcon and a harris hawk, have been helping to rid the resort of "evil seagulls".
On midweek mornings, Holly can be seen entertaining early arrival supermarket shoppers as she lets her falcon fly around the car park.
She heads to Morrisons to let her falcon soar around – a visual warning to any seagulls considering nesting there.
"It acts as a deterrent – they can scare off seagulls, pigeons and starlings," said Holly, 19.
"They see the falcon and think 'if I stay, I'm going to get eaten. I'd better move away from here'.
"But the key thing is our birds don't harm them or kill them.
"They have been specially trained not to, and they're really soft – you can stroke them.
"But the seagulls don't know that."
Holly works for her family business, East Riding Pest Control, based in Beverley, and has been working with birds for several years.
She looks after a total of 17 different birds, including two Gyr Saker Falcons called Phylliss and Keith.
She said: "It isn't a quick fix – it does take a long period of time for the seagulls to get the message.
"When they know a falcon is hanging around, they know they don't want to nest there.
"They know they have to find somewhere else to live."
Bridlington resident Chris Perry says Holly's work is vital for the seaside resort.
He spotted her letting the falcon off around Morrisons car park earlier this week.
He said: "Everyone was standing in the car park applauding the bird.
"It went high up and made swoops and dives around.
"He spotted a seagull and then a whole mob of them came – but then the falcon scared them and they all disappeared. The supermarket has been plagued by seagulls."
Mr Perry said a number of shoppers have been caught out by the seagulls in the past.
"A number of shoppers have greatly underestimated the growing menace of the seagulls," he said.
"But Holly and Morrisons are providing a valuable service."
However, some people might argue that anyone living in a seaside town should expect that seagulls will live and breed there.
Mr Perry said: "If I moved to Bempton Cliffs, I could hardly complain because that's their home.
"But in Bridlington, they are starting to invade the town and they are not being treated as the menace they are.
"You hear stories of grandchildren being attacked and pets being hurt in the garden.
"They're a menace."
Holly has been working at the Morrisons car park for a few years, but says she also gets call outs to St Stephen's shopping centre in Hull and to businesses around the region – including Manchester, Hull, East Yorkshire and Barnsley.
Holly said: "We let the birds soar around, land on buildings and let the seagulls see them.
"It is a message of, 'I'm here. Come near me and I'll have you'."
