Petition to Stop a Gull Cull

Here are some tips to help you create a petition against a cull in your area:

You can create a free petition online, for example on Change.org
Keep the text of the petition short, to the point and easy to understand, as people don’t always have a lot of time. We have some suggested wording below.
Be polite. People will be put off by rude or offensive petitions, even if they’re sympathetic to the goals you’re trying to achieve.
Ask someone to spellcheck and proofread it or send it to us and we’ll help.
Share your petition as widely as possible with friends and family and in as many online groups as you can.
You could add a picture you have taken of a gull in your area. If you don’t have any, there are websites which offer royalty-free pictures, such as Pixabay.

Here is some suggested wording for your petition (please amend in line with the information you have):

Title: Stop [Name of organisation]’s plans to cull Gulls!

Please help us oppose [whose] plans to cull gulls at [location].

Methods used to cull gulls, such as trapping and then bludgeoning them to death, are cruel and can cause terrible suffering. Shooting birds can never be entirely accurate, so wounded gulls may be left to die in agony. Shooting can also pose a danger to the public and other wildlife. Gulls generally mate with one partner for life, then work as a couple to find food, build a nest, and raise chicks. Killing one gull can affect the whole family.

As well as being cruel, killing gulls does not work, so it is a waste of resources. If there is a good source of food in an area and the environment remains attractive, more birds will quickly move into the area to replace those who have been killed.

All seven breeding gull species are birds of conservation concern, and the herring gull is red listed because of severe declines in their breeding population. In a world where wildlife is rapidly declining, we should be encouraging wildlife rather than destroying what remains.

There are many cost-effective humane alternatives to culling gulls, these include reducing the food available by ensuring streets are kept clean and street bins are emptied and blocking access to regular breeding sites.

I have emailed [who] with details of humane, non-lethal alternatives to culling. Please contact them too at [add email] and share this petition as widely as possible.

Thank you.

Add other details if you have them, for example, when the cull is likely to take place, if you know what methods they will be using, how many birds are likely to be targeted, do children and others enjoy watching the gulls.