Man Sparks Outrage After Grabbing Protected Seagull Who Was Trying To Steal His French Fries

A New Zealand man was launched into the viral video spotlight when he recently posted a clip of himself grabbing a seagull out of the air when the bird was trying to steal some of his french fries.

But despite the impressive display of reflexes, not all press is good press.

The man in the TikTok video, known as @taylorstictac on the site has faced a wave of criticism from some online viewers who noticed that the bird he snatched is a protected species, Indy 100 reported.

See the bird grab for yourself below.

The video prompted a variety of responses on TikTok.

Many were simply shocked he managed to grab the bird out of the air.

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The Queen is here/TikTok

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Others, however, were more concerned about the seagull.

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He Ain't/TikTok

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The criticism even came from a qualified professional once the video began to really make the rounds.

Annie Wallace, a representative of the Department of Conservation, told Otago Daily Times how alarmed she was upon seeing the video.

"Tarapunga are protected under the Wildlife Act, meaning it is illegal to disturb, harass or kill them. Those who do so can face fines or imprisonment."

"It is stressful for the animal whenever someone catches and holds our native birds like this."

The growing criticism led the bird-catcher in question to post a follow-up apology video.

He explained that it all went down at four in the morning as he waited for a taxi following a night of drinking. When the group of birds began circling for his french fries, he simply reacted as one swooped near, grabbed it reflexively, and pulled out his phone.

The takeaways from the story?

Try not to grab birds out of the air. And if, somehow, it just happens, then let it go right away rather than cue up a video.

Wildlife are living creatures. They aren't on the planet for humans' amusement in the form of abuse.