Steven Seagull is back at his favorite Duluth hotel for the ... 17th year?
Steven Seagull – not to be confused with the prominent actor, Steven Seagal – is back at his summer home in Duluth.
Yes, Steven Seagull (pronounced sea-GULL) is a seagull. And yes, he's been a regular at the Super 8 hotel in Duluth for up to 17 years.
Manager Jodi Chambers told GoMN he left in November, as usual, for his winter home somewhere south. Then Friday, Chambers and hotel workers heard a familiar sound: a soft tapping at the glass door in front.
"He comes up to the door and pecks at it with his beak," she explained.
Unlike other hotel guests, Seagull doesn't want to come inside. He prefers to enjoy his share of the continental breakfast outdoors. And hotel workers accommodate because they don't want their most famous guest to cause a scene.
“He makes his presence known,” Chambers said with a chuckle.
Apparently if Seagull is ignored, he'll scream like crazy until someone tends to him.
However, the regular isn't picky about what he eats. And after he's full, Seagull will leave and go about his business elsewhere in Duluth. He usually stops by the hotel two or three times a day.
But he always comes alone, bringing no friends or love interests. If other seagulls try to tag along, Seagull will chase them away.
Chambers says that over her 20 years with the hotel, she's only seen Seagull make a few exceptions. Once there was a pair of pigeons called Abbot and Costello. Seagull allowed them to dine alongside him.
Also, Seagull appears to have a special fondness or respect for crows. He won't chase them away.
That probably means a lot coming from the world famous Seagull. Chambers says she's had radio stations in Scotland and Australia call to inquire about the feathered guest.
Why Seagull returns
It's a seagull thing. They tend to return to the same places every year. Seagull just prefers the hotel life to scavenging shores.
Hey, it works. Maybe he read 7 Habits of Highly Effective Seagulls.
It makes us wonder though ... does Seagull have a hotel down south that he visits every winter? We may never know.
But seagulls have been known to live well into their 20s, so this could go on for a while yet.
