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The
Endangered Birds of Florida
        
 
The White Pelican
Pelecanus
erythrorhynchos
To begin: what is a Bird?
A Bird is a warm blooded,
bipedal (two legs)
vertebrate (has a backbone)
with feathers,
bills and wings and most can
fly.
It lays eggs to reproduce and
many theories have
it classified as a direct
descendant of Dinosaurs,
dating back to the Jurassic
period.
There are 8 Pelican species in the world
and two of them are in Florida,
the Brown who
is a year round resident and the White,
who is our "snowbird" and only
comes here in the winter.
This species is said to have existed for
over 30 million years.
The White Pelican has an all white body
with black tips on their wings,
it has pale orange legs and feet and an
orange bill and pouch.
At nearly 6 feet tall,
the White Pelican can weigh up to 30 pounds
and may have a wingspan of almost nine to ten
feet.
The sexes of this really big bird are
similar in appearance.
Want to see where the White Pelican goes in the summer?
This is the largest breeding colony of
this bird in the United States,
they arrive here in late spring and leave
in late summer.
Their numbers of over 33,000 breeding
pairs is simply incredible.
White
Pelicans at Chase Lake WMD
The Colony at Chase Lake WMD
Photo credit: FWS
The White Pelican has a very large bill with a rather
large pouch
with which they gather their food.
This Pelican unlike the Brown, does not
dive under water for its food, instead,
it simply puts its head under the water
as it is swimming, to catch fish.
A White Pelican at Sanibel Island, Florida
Photo credit: Dick
Daniels
The Pelican is a fascinating
bird to watch in the water and in flight.
They fly either in flocks or alone in
straight line or in V form.
They may live up to 20-30 years, but many
die early from starvation.
A Pair of White Pelicans
Photo credit: Mongo
Pelicans make few, if any sounds,
except for their young,
who make quite a bit, when they are in
the nest.
White Pelicans at Pelican Island NWR, Florida
Photo credit: USFWS/George Gentry
White Pelicans breed on inland lakes in
the summer, during the
remainder of the year, they can be found along the
shorelines
of both the East and West Coasts of the
U.S.
White Pelicans flying over Eagle Creek
Park
in my hometown of Indianapolis
Photo credit: rogerd
Driving along a Coastline one can
frequently see Pelicans
flying directly overhead as if they are
following you.
Pelicans are so beautiful and yet so
fragile.
Humans have not been kind to them with
respect
to where they live, feed and breed.
Earlier the
widespread use of DDT had
nearly wiped
them out due to egg failure and
destruction.
DDT as it was proved, makes the shells of
birds so thin,
that they crack and the babies die before
they can be born.
This toxic chemical made a victim of the
Brown Pelican,
just as it did the Bald Eagles and other
Birds.
With DDT finally out of the way, the only
thing that can harm
them now is Man and his insatiable
appetite for Coastal living.
All those pretty Condos and lavish Hotels
on the Beaches
have claimed many lives, they are called
Wildlife.
And Birds are just one of the Species
whose waterfront homes have been lost.
Places to learn more:
American White Pelican
Life Histories
Animal Diversity
American White Pelican
Audubon
American White Pelican
What's Your Wingspan?
Boreal Songbird Initiative
American
White Pelican
FFWCC
The American White Pelican
FWS
Wildlife Viewing
Naples News
The White Pelican of Florida
NPS
Everglades-White Pelican
Nature Conservancy
American White Pelican
Nature Works
American White
Pelican
SFWMD
White Pelican
USGS
American White
Pelican
Walking with the
Alligators
Write to Gator Woman
gatorwoman3 at centurylink.net
           
Keep Florida Wildlife Wild
and Alive~
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Last edited
March 08, 2012
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since August 12, 2011
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