By Anna Burns-Francis
Staff at Dunedin's albatross colony are growing increasingly frustrated by the visiting habits of an endangered species of seagull.
Thousands of red-billed gulls are roosting at the Taiaroa Head and getting rid of their corrosive droppings is turning into a challenge.
Washing away the droppings from 5000 seagulls is a never-ending job.
"Hosing the car down every day, hosing the buildings down every day, hosing the paths, hosing the tables, hosing the outside of the café," says Mark Jurisich.
Mr Jurisich comes to work every day hoping his car doesn't become a target for the gulls that live at Taiaroa Head.
But it's breeding season, and by the end of it, the headland will be home to around 1000 new chicks - and that all adds up to a gigantic amount of guano.
"There's a lot of krill in the harbour - it's a lovely bright red colour - they're tiny little crustaceans, and so whenever the birds do poo, it's a lovely pinky-red," says Mr Jurisich.
"And it covers absolutely everything."
Numbers of the red-billed gull have ballooned in the last decade, thanks to pest control at Taiaroa Heads.
The Department of Conservation is keen to encourage the growth spurt.
"I know red-billed gulls aren't everybody's cup of tea in terms of species of interest, but they are one of our natives," says Lyndon Perriman.
The red-billed gull is actually a threatened species - rarer than the albatross, which serves as the tourism drawcard here.
"It is a little bit unsightly, unfortunately that's one of the issues that they have to deal with when you have your building on what is essentially the boundary of a seabird colony," says Mr Perriman.
It's hoped roofing over the cafe and the path through the nesting area will help keep the bird bombing under control.
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