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Seagull Boy — The Hero We Need
But don’t deserve
For those who have been living under a rock, the European Gull Screeching Championship recently wrapped up.
And yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like — people doing seagull impressions in front of an expert judging panel.
This year’s competition, held in the Belgian coastal town of De Panne, was extra special, thanks to the participation of a bona fide superhero.
Cooper (no relation to yours truly), from Derbyshire, England, is just nine years old, but already screeches like a veteran, earning him the sobriquet ‘Seagull Boy’.
Like many superhero origin stories, it began with tragedy — in Cooper’s case, being nipped by a seagull whilst eating a tuna sandwich at the beach.
This prompted the young man to become one with the noisy seabirds, and he began to imitate their calls with uncanny accuracy. At first his family found it ‘annoying’, but his talent soon shone through.
One day, a passerby overheard Cooper’s cries and suggested he compete in the European Championships — a serendipitous meeting that almost seems ordained by fate.
Cooper and family headed to Belgium, where he would face the toughest test of his burgeoning bird-noise career.
Dressed in seagull garb, Cooper cawed his heart out in front of the judges: a panel of experts who no doubt had to fight tooth and nail to reach this lofty position.
Entrants were judged on timbre, rhythm, and variation, according to marine biologist Jan Seys, who was one of the judges.
The result? 92 points out of a possible 100, and a win in the junior category.
‘In fact, for me, he was not only the best of the young participants, but of all those who took part in the championship’, Seys said, whilst (probably) wiping a tear from his eye.
What next for the seagull whisperer? Owl hoots? Pigeon coos? Or perhaps just sharpening his seagull craft, in hopes of an unprecedented perfect score at future championships.
Whatever the case, it’s clear that the sky’s the limit for this promenade prodigy.
