Today's featured feathered friend is the American White Pelican. Of the eight Pelican species on earth, only the Brown and the American White are native to North America.
The American White Pelican is a large white water bird with a long bill (nearly 12 inches) and a large pouch typical of Pelicans. Males and females are similar in appearance although males are generally larger. Their overall length (tip of bill to tip of tail) is from 50 to 70 inches and they weigh between 10 to 20 pounds. Their eight to ten foot wingspan makes them the second largest flying bird in North American, behind the California Condor. Their black wing tips are only visible in flight.
Their summer breeding grounds are west of the Mississippi River to the Pacific Northwest, from Colorado to northern Canada. In the winter they migrate to parts of California, Arizona, the Gulf Coast states and south to Panama. They begin arriving for the winter in our area by late October and start returning north by early April.
Unlike Brown Pelicans who feed by diving head first into the water to catch fish, American White Pelicans mostly feed in cooperative groups. They form lines or circles, pushing or driving fish into shallower water, then duck their heads into the water to catch the fish. Enjoy these photos of our largest wintering bird, the American White Pelican.....tweet.....tweet!!
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| American White Pelican making a water landing. (Taken 12/15/12, Coquina Baywalk on Leffis Key, Anna Maria Island FL) |
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| American White Pelicans in a feeding formation. (Taken 1/4/13, Ackerman Park, Sarasota FL) |
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| American White Pelicans soaring over the park. (Taken 12/19/12, Myakka River State Park FL) |
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