As I said the other day, I frequently took the Bremerton ferry this summer. Each time the boat docked in Bremerton, I hurried to the front port side to check on Mama Seagull. She'd made her nest on a tall pylon that aligns with the ferry's window. I was hoping to soon see a baby or two, but all I ever got was an egg. Anyway, everybody loves baby birds.......or do they? Well, believe it or not, the Feds have been exterminating seagulls for more than a decade from Seattle's ferry terminals, because they are a health and safety hazard, after one ferry employee came down with psittacosis, a disease sometimes transmitted by birds, even the domestic parakeet. This nasty bit of news came out here in early August. Part of the article reads, "...the birds are usually killed discreetly and quietly at night to avoid offending anyone..... Nests are removed by hand. Juvenile birds typically are gassed with carbon-dioxide in a chamber about the size of a microwave oven. Adults often are killed with pellet guns..."
So I wonder when our nation's beaches are going to get rid of all their gulls.
I hope this little egg stays safe.
