Stan Seegull – keeping an eye on the Bay
Baykeeper is proud to announce that Stan Seegull has joined the team as EYE WITNESS REPORTER. Stan is no spring chicken, being one of three eggs hatched by Shirley and William Seagull on Mud Islands in November 1942. Nothing happens in the Bay that Stan doesn’t know about. If he didn’t see it, his cousin did!
Stan Seegull on a beach near you - "DID YOU SEE THAT?!"
Stan has seen a lot of changes. “The scraps aren’t what they used to be” he says. We’re looking forward to his regular news reports from around the Bay. GOT A HOT NEWS TIP? OR EVEN A HOT CHIP? POST A COMMENT TO STAN NOW!
Hang in there Stan. You’re a real survivor and all your cousins and your whole extended family are survivors. So how do you do it? I guess it comes down to not wasting anything. Tell the terns!
Ian R Levy
Hi Stan,
I was wondering what happens when trash gets thrown off the back of a boat, like when I finish drinking my lemonade and my dad says just to toss the plastic bottle overboard? Is there a garbage tip at the bottom of Port Phillip Bay?
See you around!
Little e
How many cousins do you have? Too many IMHO
STAN SAYS: Is there a garbage tip at the bottom of the Bay? Don’t get me started!!! It’s true us seagulls are happy to find a feed in a rubbish tip; and sometimes we mistake the MCG for a landfill site. BUT US SCAVENGERS HAVE STANDARDS. WE’RE NOT HAPPY ABOUT THROW-AWAYS IN THE BAY…. UNLESS YOU CAN EAT IT!
STAN SAYS: I’ve got more cousins than you’ve had reconstituted seafood dinners. WHERE DOES THAT STUFF COME FROM?? Hmmm, I must look into that. But hey… LADY ON THE PIER JUST DROPPED A CHIP…. GOTTA FLY NOW!!!!
STAN SAYS: Most people don’t know that us seagulls are born triathletes (running, swimming and flying) and we train 24/7. That’s how we stay so fit. A flock of gulls chasing one with a fish is actually playing a competitive sport called SCAVENGER. A bit like footy, but there are no teams or umpires… it’s one against the rest. THIS KEEPS US IN GOOD PHYSICAL AND MENTAL SHAPE TO DO THE DIRTY BUT NECESSARY WORK OF SCAVENGING.
The terns are different. They don’t ask for anything, only take what they need, and believe that if you’re clever enough to catch a fish then you deserve to keep it. There’s not so many of them now.
Hi Stan, I am pleased to see some of your cousins in the estuary of the Yarra. Their clean, shiny white plumage is an attractive contrast to the dark and dirty water. Keep up your good work of cleaning up after we dirty humans.
STAN SAYS:Yes it’s true… the dirtier the water the whiter we look; and my cousins are in for a quick scrap no matter what you throw at them. They’re pretty gullible! But don’t be fooled by their presence on the estuary. Our ‘seefood diet’ (if you see food you eat it) means we do alright just about anywhere. But the same could be said for the Yellow-eye Mullet… and they’ve disappeared from the estuary this year.
Some say it’s the drought and the limited environmental flows coming downstream that make the estuary too salty for Mullet to spawn in. Another theory is that the Yarra dredging has stirred up a toxic soup that’s no place for a fish. Fact is, it’s probably a bit of both.
So things are pretty crook really, but it’s good to see the Yarra Riverkeepers having a go for the river life. I just hope the rest of the community are prepared to give you a hand. Have you guys got any activities or events we can flock along to?
Can you tell me if there are any reports or old records of the size of the dolphin population in Port Phillip Bay, say about 100 years ago. I suppose that numbers of animals at the top of the food chain gives a good idea how healthy the whole system might have been.
IAN R LEVY
I hope you weren’t offended. Some of my best friends are gulls (and galahs too.)
STAN SAYS TO IAN: I’ve asked all my cousins about this and none know of any historic studies of dolphins. Not surprising really… it’s generally the species of interest to the commercial or recreational fishos that attract serious study. But things changed in the 1960s with the Environmental Study of the Port Phillip Bay 1968-1971… over 370 pages of scientific data and analysis, physical, chemical and biological characteristics, and species lists. But would you believe it… no mention of dolphins!
Just wondering if you ever heard of the bird lady in mordialloc she feeds the birds every sunset it is a sight to see…. the birds do a spirraling dance all around her it is one of the most magical thingsi have ever seen sure your cousins know all about it was wondering is fish really all seagulls originally ate or where their certain seeds they ate as a back up plan….
Go stan love the fact we now can talk to you on line
STAN SAYS TO JESS:Thanks for letting me know about the Mordi bird lady. My cousins have obviously been keeping this to themselves! As a matter of fact us gulls eat a really wide range of foods. Plant materials include seeds, leaves, fruit and seaweed. Animals on the menu are shellfish, worms, millipedes, nymphs, grasshoppers, water bugs, beetles, flies, caterpillars, ants, shrimps, scorpions, and spiders. We also eat eggs and chicks of other birds. So we never go short of a feed. I reckon that’s how there got to be so many of us. Great to hear from you Jess!