Gull La Carte! Dive-bombing seagulls in South Shields now targeting posh food and fine dining dishes
The huge flocks in South Shields, South Tyneside, have sparked fear in locals who now need to guard their plates outside cafes and restaurants.
But families in the area say posh sandwiches and French pastries are being nabbed from their hands - rather than traditional seaside fare such as fish and chips.
The birds also munch on pizza, saveloy dips and leftover smoked salmon.
Protected by UK environmental law, the gulls have moved away from the beach into the town and taken over local parks.
One restaurant worker, who didn't want to be named, said: 'They have developed a taste for fine dining.
'When there are plates outside, the seagulls get to them.
'They love the posh stuff, like smoked salmon, but they will also eat sandwiches and pizzas.
'A lot of people in Shields sit on benches and feed them all sorts so they think they can help themselves to anything, and they have developed a taste for fancy food.'
Michelle Addison said she got the fright of her life when a gull stole her sandwich as she was trying to feed her young granddaughter.
The 62-year-old said: 'I asked my granddaughter if she wanted a bite of my fresh sandwich which I had made myself and a seagull swooped down and took it out of my hands.
'They become violent and attack you in the street. This one could have taken my granddaughter's eyes out.
'If you have posh food out then they will take it.
'If you dropped a load of nice pastries onto the floor, I guarantee they would come.
'The neighbours feed birds around here which is fine but others are throwing food into their gardens and the seagulls come.
'It's getting worse and they are eating more and more foods.
'I contacted Environmental Health about what happened but there wasn't much they could do.'
Single parent and former retail worker David Keith had just purchased a savaloy dip from the bakers which he was about to tuck into when he was dive-bombed.
The gourmet northern sandwich consists of sausages, pease pudding spread and stuffing finished with English mustard and served in a soft bun.
Mr Keith, 46, said: 'I had the saveloy stolen straight out of my hands.
'I was in the town centre and bought one from a bakery nearby.
'I came out of the shop and turned around because someone shouted my name and the next thing I know it was swiped from my hands.
'I was so annoyed I didn't bother buying another one and I went to the pub afterwards.
'It used to be chips and bread they would take but now they wait outside of all kinds of different food shops.
'The saveloy dips have a certain kind of taste but they're not bothered.
'There must be 75 per cent of people in the town who have had nice food stolen out of their hand.'
During a recent sunny day in the town around 15 gulls got into a frenzy over leftover chocolate pastries, smoked salmon, and lemon Mr Kipling cakes, which had been left on a picnic table.
Lynette Jones, 52, said: 'My granddaughter was swamped recently when one seagull tried to get her lunch from her.
'It landed on her head and they tried to pinch it but she managed to keep hold of it.
'They are everywhere now and people have to watch all of the time.'
Ms Jones's 12-year-old grandson Ryan added: 'I've had it twice before where they have tried to divebomb me for my sausage sandwiches.
'On one occasion I had to run inside Greggs to take cover.'
Chris Watson, 26, a supervisor at The Rattler restaurant said: 'It is a problem, if you leave a plate out there for a little while they will eat from it.
'Someone once had a full meal and put their plate down before coming in for a drink.
'By the time they came back out, everything was gone.
'They were gone in less than two minutes.
'They are so fast.'
Laura Wake, a 35-year-old nurse added: 'I was saying earlier there aren't even swans at the pond anymore, it's all seagulls.
'In the town centre they go into a frenzy and swoop down, looking for all kinds of food including more posh items.'
Gary Davies, 60, a retired business owner, said: 'It's like that Hitchcock film, The Birds.
Despite the fact the hungry birds are moving more inland to towns and cities where they're being fed, populations are decreasing
'They've come after me while I've been eating, there was twenty of them so I threw the food, I panicked.
'It's the norm now, it's something that is accepted.
'Runners get attacked when they go out on a morning when the birds start having babies and are more aggressive than usual.'
Despite the fact the hungry birds are moving more inland to towns and cities where they're being fed, populations are decreasing.
All seven species of gull that regularly breed in the UK are now listed as having a red or amber status on the Birds of Conservation list.
An RSPB spokesman said: 'We don't advise feeding gulls as it makes them expect food from people.
'We also wouldn't recommend feeding gulls due to current concerns regarding avian flu.
'It's much better to let gulls forage naturally on their own.
'Gulls are intelligent, resourceful and are very adaptable, so as naturally resourceful birds, they are perfectly capable of finding their own food.
'However, we do encourage people instead to learn about these incredible birds and how to live alongside them.'
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