这对海鸥，不好惹！

Aggressive Seagulls Keep Couple Hostage in Their Own Home for Six Days

好斗的海鸥把这对夫妇当作人质关在自己家里六天。

An elderly couple in the UK claimed that they were held hostage by a pair of seagulls nesting on the roof of their Lancashire home. Every time they tried to leave the birds would become aggressive and attack them.

英国一对老夫妇声称，他们在兰开夏郡的家中被一对筑巢的海鸥扣为人质。每次他们试图离开时，它们就会变得凶猛并攻击它们。

Roy and Brenda Pickard’s story sounds like a real life version of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Birds”. The elderly couple were held hostage in their own home by a pair of adult Herring Gulls after the birds’ chicks slipped on the roof of the house and landed onto the canopy directly above the front door. Every time Roy tried opening the front door, he was confronted by two angry squawking adult seagulls. One time, when he decided to take his chances and go outside, the 71-year-old was hit so hard on the back of the head that he had to be taken to the hospital for help. Local authorities have installed a gazebo outside the couple’s home, which should offer some protection, but that’s the best they can do for now.

罗伊和布伦达·皮卡德的故事听起来像是阿尔弗雷德·希区柯克《鸟》的真实版。这对老夫妇在自家被一对成年鲱鱼鸥劫持为人质，原因是鲱鱼鸥的幼鸟在屋顶上滑倒，落在正门上方的顶棚上。每次罗伊试图打开前门时，他都会遇到两只愤怒的、尖叫的成年海鸥。有一次，当这位71岁的老人决定冒险出门时，他的后脑勺被撞得很重，不得不被送往医院寻求帮助。当地政府已经在这对夫妇的家外面安装了一个凉亭，这应该可以提供一些保护，但这是他们目前所能做的最好的。

“The whole thing has been terrible,” Roy Prickard told reporters. “I’ve not been able to go out of the front door. If I try to get out of the door, the two adult birds are right there and I’ve got no chance. It’s genuinely frightening. My wife isn’t well or very mobile at the moment so we’re relying on me to get out.”

“整件事都很糟糕，”皮卡德告诉记者。“我不能走出前门。只要我想出去，两只鸟就在那儿，我一点儿机会都没有。真的很可怕。我妻子现在行动不便，所以只能靠我出去。”

Luckily, the Prickard’s garage is connected to their house and he can get out through there when he needs to do some shopping, but he doesn’t dare get out of the car to close the garage door, so he always leaves it open until he comes back.

幸运的是，他们的车库与房子相连，他可以在需要购物时从那里出去，但他不敢下车去关车库门，所以在他回来之前，车库一直是开着的。

Roy has complained about the situation both to the local authorities and animal organizations like the RSPCA and RSPB, but their solutions have been less than ideal. The Wyer Council says that Herring Gulls are protected while nesting, so all they can do is try to make the couple’s life bearable by installing a gazebo and making arrangements so that 77-year-old Brenda can reach her private appointments safely.

罗伊向当地政府和像皇家防止虐待动物协会(RSPCA)和皇家防止虐待动物协会(RSPB)这样的动物组织投诉了这一情况，但他们的解决方案并不理想。怀尔委员会说，鲱鱼海鸥在筑巢时是受保护的，所以他们所能做的就是安装一个凉亭，并做好安排，可以让77岁的布伦达安全地参加她的私人约会，进而使这对老夫妇的生活还能忍受一段时日。

“We sympathise with Mr Pickard’s situation, seagulls can be troublesome, particularly when nesting,” A Wyre Council spokesperson said. “We have visited Mr Pickard to assess the situation and have given advice on how he can deal with the gulls. For now, a solution is in place which will enable Mr Pickard to take his wife to her private appointment.”

怀尔委员会的一位发言人说：“我们非常同情皮卡德先生的处境，海鸥可能会很麻烦，尤其是在筑巢时。”“我们拜访了皮卡德先生，评估了形势，并就他如何应对海鸥提出了建议。目前，已经有了一个解决方案，可以让皮卡德先生带妻子去参加她的私人约会。”

Unfortunately, animal organizations wouldn’t help the Prickards either. For now, all he can do is wait for the chicks to fly away.

非常不幸，动物组织也帮不了受害者。现在，他所能做的就是等小鸟们自己飞走。

“The RSPCA and RSPB have been no help whatsoever, they seem to put the rights of these birds above those of people, which is ridiculous,” Roy said.

罗伊说：“皇家鸟类保护协会和皇家鸟类保护协会毫无帮助，他们似乎把这些鸟类的权利凌驾于人类之上，这太荒谬了。”