Feathered Siege
"One woman. A shared roof. An avian invasion that changes everything."
Feathered Siege is part one of a three-part series: Three Months on a Gull-Infested Roof
The main series is free to all subscribers. After the series, I’ll be posting follow-up piece of out-takes and behind the scenes explanations for paying supporters.
Feathered Siege
The invasion begins.
6th April: Unexpected Tenants
I have returned from Iceland to find my roof, by which I mean the roof that my apartment is perched on, has another residence. A pair of gulls patrol the rails, eyeing me with suspicion. In the far corner, a messy bundle of twigs, a half-hearted attempt at a nest.
Last year, I took on the role of a screeching human scarecrow to convince them to nest elsewhere. They were not impressed. This year, I’m too late to even try. I will focus on claiming my territory: my wooden terrace and this side of the roof. My herb garden hangs in the balance.
16th April: Love Island
Woke up to an unexpected matinee. The gulls on the roof were, um, engaged in a passionate encounter in full view of the living room window. Gary came during the distraction and stood there stoically until I took out some treats.
After the main show, the female gull—this mornings display means I now know which is which—has taken up a new post closer to my terrace to keep an eye on the crows. Meanwhile, a curious jackdaw is now parked in the far corner, checking out the nest. She has not noticed.
22nd April: Snow Bird
I would not want to be a baby gull in Estonia.
1st May: Gulls vs Corvids
Yesterday, I fed Gary some pumpkin seeds that I had dropped. Two jackdaws came and grabbed a few before Gary could get them all. Another four jackdaws were on the railing near the nest, looking around the area innocently, as if they weren’t trying to steal a look into the nest.
Just as I thought it was odd that the gulls didn’t mind,one appeared from above like a scene straight out of Top Gun. It dived at full speed towards the railing and the jackdaws got the hell out of there. They regrouped on the high ground (the actual roof to my apartment). The gull circled and then flew straight at them, scattering them. Then it nonchalantly flew to the nest and stood quietly next to the sitting gull. No jackdaws anywhere to be seen.
12th May: Diplomats Depart
Very few corvids left. Gary is still coming to the ledge by my office window for treats. I have taught him to jump on the rail to let me know that he wants feeding. Or perhaps better put, he has taught me to go outside with food when he jumps on the rail.
Today, one gull remained on the nest while the other buzzed the ledge to try to drive Gary away. They must have an egg!
I put some dog kibble onto the ledge and then stood nearby to keep the gulls at bay while Gary grabbed the food. Gary did not seem grateful.
16th May: Talks Collapse
It’s an avian cold war out there and I’ve become an unwilling participant in this increasingly hostile conflict. I ceded half the roof to the gulls but they have taken that as a sign of weakness and annexed the rest of my rooftop territory. They conduct aggressive sorties, their low flyovers serving as shock-and-awe tactics to intimidate me.
It’s working. I’ve retreated to my terrace, unable to counter their swooping attacks while I water my basil.
Crow Ledge, once a sanctuary for Gary and his collaborators, now faces constant aerial assaults. My terrace, the last bastion of my outside domain, is constantly surveilled by both the gull and corvid population.
17th May: Espionage
I went to get water from the outside fridge and Gary landed on the ledge with a loud thud, looking frazzled and upset. Although I have declared my terrace to be a bird-free zone, I did sneak Gary a quick snack before the gulls noticed his presence.
18th May: Downy Threat Emerges
Surveillance has revealed that the gulls have a new recruit: a small fluffy operative. Possibly psychological warfare tactic to lower my defenses.
19th May: Bombshell
Clearly my surveillance tactics need work. A friend of mine sent back one of my photos with a red circle, asking if there is another nestling in the background.
It is too dark to be sure; however, I am quite concerned by this turn of events.
The adults have taken on parental roles, one stays with the nest, acting as a guard dog. The other flies towards the coast to forage for food and appears a few hours later.
Gary has already learned to watch for this departure for his visits to Crow Ledge, as the Guard-dog gull won’t leave the nestling(s?) unattended in order to chase him away.
23rd May: Recon aborted due to aggressive air defense
This morning the roof was eerily quiet. I ventured onto the roof in confusion, completely unprotected. A gull appeared from nowhere and dived bombed me as I quickly retreated back to the safety of my terrace.
They appear to have relocated to the HVAC unit in the middle of the roof. I didn’t get a good look, as the gull made it clear it was happy to end my life if I approached any closer.
This relocation does not bode well. I fear we will have further border wars once the little one(s?) start exploring.
24th May: Gull Force Triples
The adult gulls had been keeping watch from rails on the far side of the roof. Now, they remain perched on the HVAC unit, technically on MY half of the roof. They are treating it as a nestling watchtower, surveying the local territory for predators. And me.
I dared to edge onto the roof with my camera set to full zoom to try to get evidence that there are two nestlings.
There are not. I was wrong. There are three.
25th May: Cattle Medication Shocker
The three nestlings have started exploring the roof, pottering about like Huey, Dewey and Louie. They are annoyingly cute. I can’t believe that I’m this easily swayed.
My doctor prescribed new pills so I looked them up on the Internet. The medication is banned for cattle in India. Not because it is dangerous for the cows but because it’s bad for the vultures.
It almost certainly would be fatal to baby gulls.
I mean, I’m not worrying about them pecking at my flesh but you know, if I had a stroke on the terrace or something, I wouldn’t expect them to turn away food just because we are neighbours.
I wonder if I should let their parents know.
27th May: Crow Diplomacy Found Wanting
This thing was waiting for me on Crow Ledge this morning.
This better not be a crow gift.
I’ve taken great personal risk, crossing enemy lines to put food out for them. This bit of random roof rubbish does not make me feel appreciated.
28th May: Possible Strategic Partnership
Reddit tells me that I’m an ungrateful wretch as the Crow gift is clearly prime nesting material.
Gary regularly peers through my windows to find me when I’m not at my desk, which I find disconcerting. It’s even worse to discover that he doesn’t think much of my furnishings.
30 May: Operation Rooftop
The cold war is heating up. One of the gulls is running near constant reconnaissance missions on Crow Ledge and my herb garden. Patrolling Gull (which is sometimes Foraging Gull and sometimes Guard-Dog Gull) has taken to multiple fly-pasts per day.
Crow Ledge tactical advantages: sheltered by overhang, impossible for large birds to fly into. Crows exploit this by landing nearby and walking to the ledge.
The gulls do not know how to get there and do not know why the crows are there. This leads to the constant surveillance in hopes of discovering its secrets, or at least scatter the crows before I can get out there. Patrolling Gull even attempted intimidate me on my own terrace. I stood my ground but the situation is clearly escalating.
I think Patrolling Gull has realized that I am colluding with the crows. And yet, the crows are unlikely to defend me against invaders, especially not if they knew my body was contaminated with carrion poison. What a brilliant tactical move: sneakily eliminating the entire Gull family with poisoned human while keeping their hands, well feathers, completely clean.
It occurs to me for the first time that these are ex-Soviet crows living in an ex-military city, closed to the world to hide the secret nuclear submarine based. These crows have been witness to decades of subterfuge and sneak attacks.
I fear I have stumbled into a far more complex and perilous situation than I had realized.
Later, I would discover that this was the calm before the storm. I was right only in that I was woefully unprepared for the chaos to come.
This was part one of the Three Months of a Gull-Infested Roof. This is a free series so feel free to share (and if someone shared it with you, feel free to sign up!)
Three Months of a Gull-Infested Roof
Part 1: Feathered Siege (you are here)
The invasion begins.Part Two: Fluffy Occupation
Three chicks turn Sylvia’s life upside down.Part Three: The Last Gull Standing
Sylvia thought she knew how this story would end. She was wrong.Afterword: After the Gulls of Summer Have Gone
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