Herring Gull

For those who live in a seaside town plagued by herring gulls nesting on roofs and stealing food from their hands, the idea that they're a Red List species comes as something of a shock. Yet the population of Larus argentatus has plummeted over the last two decades. One reason given is the loss of open land-fill domestic waste sites.
They are impressive birds, flying at close quarters to us humans in a way that eagles and other large species of bird seldom do. No wonder Jonathan Bach chose a seagull as his protagonist.