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A woman befriended a seagull that crashed onto her balcony – only for her new pal to immediately betray her by taking a bite out of her nose. Watch the chaos unfold here:
Hayley Binnington, 41, had just got out of bed on 29 October when she heard a noise on the balcony of her flat in Worthing, West Sussex.
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But she didn’t panic, as she knew exactly what it was: her friendly neighbourhood seagull Bernie, who had done the same thing ‘loads of times’ before.
Binnington thinks Bernie had caught a whiff of some potato wedges she’d had the night before, and had come to investigate – only to proceed to ‘regurgitate crabs’ onto the floor while knocking over several ornaments.
Things went from bad to worse when she tried to pick the bird up to pose for a snap, as Bernie decided to bite her.
But Binnington’s misfortune didn’t end there.
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After 'throwing him out of the window', she realised that she had also smashed out one of her veneers in the battle, which she had to superglue back on.
Former hair stylist Binnington said: "I knew what [the noise] was straight away - it's happened loads of times.
"I just think it's funny. I'm a pretty chilled out person - if I was any more chilled, I'd be in a coma. I really just don't care.
"Because he was in my hand, I decided to give him a cuddle before I let him go, but he pecked me. I think he was annoyed because he wanted the [potato] wedges.
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"He bit my nose; I threw him out the window and suddenly my veneer was in my mouth! I was like, 'oh no, what's happened?'
"I've had to book a dentist appointment, but I've got some superglue for now to try and stick it back on.
"He really, really hurt my nose. I've got a cut. I've got to keep putting cream on and making sure it is cleaned properly.
"He cut all the way from one side, underneath and inside the nose, as well as down the middle and on the other side. So, I've got this snip on my nose. It's all scabby and bloody.
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"I'm fine though, it'll go away."
She said Bernie returned ‘five seconds’ after being forcibly removed from the sixth-floor flat, and watched from the window ledge as she tidied up his mess.
Binnington lives three floors above Bernie’s nest, which he shares with ‘wife Betty’.
After becoming ‘best pals’ with the male seagull in summer 2020, she feeds him daily and even sometimes orders him a breakfast delivery, despite previously being fined £150 by her building manager for feeding the birds.
Binnington continued said: "I'm his friend. I think he pretends to be my friend because he wants some food - but I think he loves me, really.
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"It was during covid years, and everyone was indoors so he became sort of like a new best friend.
"He's one of the only people I see, really. I see him every day and I see my mum once a month.
"I've collected the feathers he leaves on the windowsill and I'm going to make a dreamcatcher out of them."
The viral video of Bernie’s chaotic adventures in Binnington's flat racked up more than 2.3 million views on TikTok, with many finding the bizarre friendship adorable to see.
"This is such an incredible relationship you have with him," one said, adding: "He's sassy and I love it."
Others suggested Binnington should be careful with the wild seagull, with one suggesting: "You don't pick him up like that - next time try getting his wings to his body then holding him with the wings next to his body."
Someone else said: "I was waiting for it to peg your eye out... they are wild and will do it in a second. Gotta be more careful when handling them."
Jess Hardiman