Absolutely. There is also the different calls. There is the ambiance softer noise that gets dubbed into videos of tropical paradises and then there is an aggressive grating one that all of the distance can't make tranquil.
I don't know. When there's a bunch of them hanging out on a big sea rock hundreds of feet off shore, screaming at each other like a bus full of old people, it brings my blood pressure down a bit. Whatever distance it turns into schadenfreude, that's that sweet spot.
Man, you got it! I was going to say the same thing. Distance.
Damned birds are LOUD, and up close they are very annoying. If you're on the beach, and you've got the sound of the waves overpowering everything else, they're not too bad, though. But in the city, when they're flying overhead, their squawk is pretty overwhelming.
I find it relaxing but one day, I fell asleep on the beach and my friends put some Cheetos around me and I woke up surrounded by seagulls. That was annoying (even if I thought it was funny).
Depends how close they are, and the amount. And time of day.
Had a flock live outside our apartment for a time. We couldn't sleep, kids couldn't sleep, and they became afraid of birds for a time due to it. Not sure how many times I had to explain that birds won't come into our home. In fact they don't even want to. They want to stay outside.