A SEAGULL cull might not work because the birds are too clever.

Amid David Cameron's comments that a "big conversation" on seagull culling needed to take place, Brighton and Hove City Council has said culling may not be an option for controlling the large numbers of the birds in Sussex.

The Prime Minister did not directly address the option of a cull during a radio interview in Cornwall on Friday but his words prompted speculation the measure could be on the cards.

The comments came after an eight-year-old Yorkshire Terrier was pecked to death in a garden in Newquay and a 20-year-old tortoise died after an equally savage attack in Liskeard, both in Cornwall.

Although attacks on pets have not been reported in Brighton and Hove, the birds are frequently criticised for swooping down to swipe food from seafront visitors and bin bags are often ripped apart.

The animals have gained a reputation for aggravating businesses, residents and tourists alike, with complaints they are becoming increasingly vicious and dangerous.

Some have welcomed the idea of a cull or more stringent pest control, but others say the animals are part of coastal life.

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokeswoman said the birds might outwit a cull.

She said: "Local culling may not be a solution, as gulls are not confined to a single centre of activity. They are capable of making a round trip of 100km in search of food in only a few hours. Secondly they are considerably more intelligent than most birds and, despite the best efforts of pest control agencies to deter or remove them, colonies have continued to expand."

She said deterrents, like fake birds and distress calls, discharging firearms, and traditional culling methods like poisoning the birds, all had their disadvantages. But she added that culling by egg oiling - where liquid paraffin is painted on shells in nests - could be a solution although the council may run into legal problems.

She said the authority received "numerous" enquiries every year, especially during the seagull mating season when "nuisance" increases.

"Nuisance alone is not considered to be a reasonable justification for culling," she said.

She also said public reaction and opposition could cause problems if a cull was suggested and therefore the council's strategy was to focus on the food sources - by introducing communal bins so the birds cannot get to "noxious" food waste.

The council also provides advice on how to "pest proof" properties to stop nesting.

In March the Government announced it would spend a million pounds researching how to deal with growing numbers of the birds in towns and cities.

Urban gulls are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. Culling can only be carried out where there is a threat to public health and safety, or to aircraft.