'Even seagulls go by train': Passengers amused as bird joins train at Hastings bound for London

A seagull caused a stir at Hastings station earlier today (Sunday 16 April), after it joined a service towards London Charing Cross.

The bird was caught on camera by eagle-eyed passenger Graeme Davis, who snapped the gull perched on a table looking out of a window.

It's not known how the fare-evader managed to get into the carriage or where it joined the service.

Taking to social media, Graeme flagged the birds presence to the train operator Southeastern, saying: "Even seagulls go by train! @Se_Railway on platform 4 Hastings, carriage 2. Train for CX."

The rail company quickly came back to Graeme saying it believed the gull had left the service, seemingly avoiding being ticketed by revenue protection officers.

One of its social media team said: "Hi Graeme, thank you for this. I believe the seagull has now departed the train. Prefers a day in Hastings rather than London."

It's not the first time an animal has caused a nuisance at a station in the South East of England, with some causing more disruption than others.

Last year a swan was spotted causing a nuisance at Salisbury station, despite efforts to tempt it off of a busy platform with a cheese sandwich.

It gave staff the runaround whilst waiting to board a service towards the West County.

Last May, a herd of cows caused major disruption to rail services on the line towards London Waterloo, after they were caught waiting for a train to 'London Watermoo'.

At the time South Western Railway called the situation "udderly unbelievable".

The unsuspecting fare-evaders casually made their way into Godalming station and waited for the service.

Unfortunately for them, the cows caused wide-scale disruption by waiting patiently on the tracks, meaning all services had to be suspended whilst they were 'moo'ved' to safety.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...