When birds attack: 'Aggressive seagull' leaves teen seriously injured, NT eagle tries to kidnap boy

An 'aggressive seagull' has left a UK woman with suspected spinal injuries while an eagle has attempted to fly off with a young boy from a Northern Territory nature park.

An "aggressive seagull" has caused a UK woman to fall off a pier, leaving her with suspected spinal injuries. Source: AAP

A UK woman, 18, has had scary encounter with an "aggressive seagull" in the coastal town of St Ives, Cornwall.

The woman, named as Joanna, was sitting on the pier eating an ice cream on Tuesday when the seagull swooped on her and stole the ice cream.

The Evening Standard reported the woman panicked and fell backwards 15 feet off the pier on to pebbles, suffering suspected spinal injuries.

They reported the victim's mother, Anita, told a Cornwall radio station her daughter had called her after the fall.

"She was sat on the pier eating an ice cream and a seagull came and took it off her - and she just fell onto the pebbles at the bottom," she said.

“It was a case of being in the right place at the right time because as soon as she fell a coastguard came running over and said - 'Don't move, just don't move.'

“They were absolutely amazing with her.

“Joanna phoned me and said - 'Don't worry mum, but I've fallen off a wall. They're just checking me over but I've got to go.' And that was the only phone call I had."

Meanwhile Victorian photographer Christine O'Connell has captured the moment a wedge-tailed eagle tried to fly off with a young boy from the Alice Springs Desert Park.

Ms O'Connell posted the picture on Instagram along with a description of the dramatic incident.

"The young boy in the green kept pulling his zipper up and down," she wrote.

"For some reason the wedge-tailed eagle did not like it and instead of flying over to the log [as] he is meant to for a photo opportunity he flew straight at the young boy and attacked him.

"The show was quickly cancelled and the boy taken off to first aid.

"Those talons are huge he was a very lucky young boy."

The NT News reported the boy was from Albury, NSW and is about six years old.

"He screamed, the mother was distraught, and the presenters wrapped up the show very quickly," witness Keenan Lucas told the newspaper.

"It looked as if the bird tried to pick him up like a small animal and take off with him."

The Alice Springs Desert Park is investigating the incident.