PELICAN

Pelican is a large bird that lives near water. Pelicans have a long, straight bill with a flexible pouch made of skin on the underside. They use the pouch to catch fish, their chief food. Pelicans have webbed feet and are strong swimmers. They also are skilled fliers, but they are clumsy on land.

Kinds. There are seven species of pelicans worldwide. Five of these species have white feathers with some black on the wings. Of the remaining two species, one is gray and white, and the other is brown. The brown species, called the brown pelican, lives along the coasts of North and South America. The six other species inhabit rivers and shallow lakes in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia.

The brown pelican and the American white pelican are the most common North American species. The American white pelican weighs about 16 pounds (7 kilograms) and is about 5 feet (1.5 meters) long. It has a wingspread of up to 10 feet (3 meters). This bird nests in western and central North America. It migrates in the fall as far south as Mexico and Central America.

The brown pelican is found as far north as North Carolina and British Columbia. It is the smallest species of pelican. It measures about 4 feet (1.2 meters) long and has a wingspread of about 7 feet (2 meters).

Habits. American white pelicans often fish in groups. They swim along the top of the water in a line, driving the fish ahead of them. After the fish have been chased into shallow water, the pelicans scoop up the catch with their pouches. The brown pelican flies until it spots a fish near the surface of the water. Then it dives into the water to catch the fish.

Pelicans are almost always seen in flocks. While flying, American white pelicans may gather in flocks of up to 1,000 birds. These birds may soar upward in tight circles on a rising current of hot air called a thermal. They often soar so high that they disappear from sight.

Pelicans nest in large colonies (groups). Some pelicans nest in trees. They build their nests out of twigs and other plant materials. Other pelicans nest in small hollows on the ground, usually on islands. Female pelicans lay two or three chalky-white eggs, which hatch in about a month. Pelicans are born without feathers. They cannot fly until they are about 10 to 12 weeks old.

Pelicans and people. Brown pelicans inhabit coastal regions of the United States. Through the years, housing and commercial developments have threatened survival of the birds in some areas. In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established the country's first national wildlife refuge--Pelican Island, in Florida--to protect the nesting sites of brown pelicans.

Large-scale, agricultural use of pesticides--especially DDT--also has endangered pelicans. DDT was first widely used on crops after World War II ended in 1945. Rains washed the pesticide into rivers and lakes, and pelicans absorbed it into their bodies by eating contaminated fish. The chemical caused pelicans to lay abnormally thin-shelled eggs that broke open easily. As a result, few chicks were born and pelican populations declined seriously in California and several Southern states. After the federal government began a gradual ban on all uses of DDT in 1972, the number of pelicans in the United States began to increase.

Scientific classification. Pelicans are in the family Pelecanidae. The American white pelican is Pelecanus erythrorhynchos. The brown pelican is P. occidentalis.

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