As another busy summer season gets underway in Ocean City, thousands of visitors are flocking to the resort’s beaches and iconic boardwalk to soak up the sun and enjoy classic shore treats. From pizza and french fries to funnel cakes and ice cream, food is a central part of the boardwalk experience — but it also attracts a persistent problem that has frustrated tourists and local officials for years.
The return of summer crowds also brings the annual challenge of managing seagulls, which are known for swooping down on unsuspecting visitors and stealing food. To address the issue, Ocean City has once again partnered with East Coast Falcons, whose highly trained birds of prey help discourage seagull activity along the busy boardwalk. The program provides a safe and effective way to reduce nuisance behavior while allowing residents and tourists to enjoy the shore experience with fewer interruptions.
The New Jersey-based company specializes in bird abatement, using a team of highly trained raptors to deter nuisance birds. At any given time, beachgoers may spot falcons, hawks and owls perched on light poles, rooftops and other elevated locations near the boardwalk, where they serve as a visible reminder that predators are nearby.
One of the company’s veteran birds, Strawberry, was seen soaring above the boardwalk over the weekend. At 22 years old, Strawberry continues to patrol the area despite the warmer-than-average temperatures experienced last week.
“She knows this job pretty well,” her handler said. “All it takes for us to come up and fly her is to pretty much let her do what she does best. Seagulls fear her, and they respect her.”
East Coast Falcons owner Erik Swanson, a master falconer, said the company was hired by Ocean City in 2019 following an increase in aggressive gull encounters along the boardwalk and beach.
“I was working up at JFK when it happened, and I thought at first that it was a joke,” Swanson said of learning that Ocean City was seeking help. He quickly realized the issue was serious. “The gulls were very aggressive here.”
Handlers regularly walk the boardwalk with their birds and equipment, remaining ready to respond whenever gull activity increases. Their gear includes GPS tracking devices, telemetry equipment, gloves, lures, leashes, water bottles and other essentials needed to safely manage the birds.
“Some of our falconers will walk between 20 and 30 miles on a busy day,” Swanson said. “There’s a lot of walking and moving involved.”
Laughing gulls are common throughout New Jersey’s coastal communities and are easily recognized by their distinctive call, which resembles human laughter. While their natural diet consists primarily of fish, insects and mollusks, gulls often become accustomed to human food when visitors feed them intentionally or leave food unattended.
Since the program began seven years ago, city officials and business owners have largely viewed the effort as a success.
“If you think back in life, what was the most innocent time of your life? It’s being on the beach with your family,” Swanson said. “The gulls were making the beach not so nice. Seagulls are a lot more intelligent than people give them credit for.”
Whether visitors are spending the day on the beach or strolling the boardwalk, they can take comfort in knowing a team of highly trained birds of prey is keeping watch from above.
East Coast Falcons will maintain a presence on the Ocean City Boardwalk and Asbury Avenue through mid-October.
