Shouting 'that's my pasty!' is best way to deter greedy gulls – study

Some people respond to the unwanted attentions of a gull eyeing up a bag of chips or a Cornish pasty by frantically flapping their hands while others beat a rapid retreat into the nearest seaside shelter.

- Steven Morris

But researchers have found that a no-nonsense yell - even a relatively quiet one - may be the best way to get rid of a pesky herring gull.

Animal behaviourists from the University of Exeter placed a portion of chips in a place where gulls were bound to find them. Once a gull approached, they played three recordings: a male voice shouting: “No, stay away, that’s my food, that’s my pasty!”; the same voice speaking the same words; and the “neutral” song of a robin.