A study in Brown Pelicans for you today. I love watching them skim along the shore, and I thought Gregg's sister's photographs were fabulous.
Here are some facts about them.
Brown pelicans are the only
species to dive into the water from 9 m (30 ft) above to capture prey. After
catching the prey and a lot of water, they tip their bill downward to drain the
water before swallowing the fish.
While brown pelicans are known for diving, they will never be deep
divers due to the extensive system of subcutaneous air-sacs that give them
their buoyancy in the water.
The pelican's pouch (gular pouch) is used as a dip net to catch
fish, which are soon swallowed into the stomach (the center of gravity) so that
they can maintain their balance while flying.
They have an extendable sac of skin at the base of their throat,
which is capable of holding up to 11 liters (3 gallons) of water, several times
more than their belly.
Most fossil species of pelican are placed in the same genus as the
modern pelican due to extreme anatomical similarities. This suggests that the
present form of pelican has changed very little over the past 30 to 40 million
years.
The brown pelican, the smallest of the Pelecanidae family, can fly
up to 48 kph (30 mph).
Its gular pouch may be used to disperse heat as well as to collect
fish and rainwater.
Brown pelicans are best adapted to living alongside humans. They
are frequently seen at fishing ports up and down the coast, opportunistically
feeding on fish scraps discarded by fisherman.
I bring you these photos with thanks again to my sister-in-law. Thanks for looking and enjoy the rest of your week.
Very nice!
ReplyDeleteThank you Cloudia :)
DeleteI think pelicans show their dinosaur ancestry very clearly - and I adore them. Great photos.
ReplyDeleteI think so too EC. I have been looking at videos and photographs of the Shoebill Stork. That also is an amazing bird, definitely can see the dinosaur in that one.
DeleteThese are lovely pictures, and good facts. I have NEVER seen a Pelican in real life.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ginny, I hope you get to see pelican one day. They are such a fun bird to watch.
DeleteHello Denise,
ReplyDeleteGreat post and info on the Brown Pelicans. I love all the photos, great captures!
Take care, have a happy day!
Thank you Eileen. So glad you enjoyed my sister-in-law's photos. You take care and have a happy day also :)
DeleteAmazing birds. How wonderful to see them flying across the water. Thank you for the information about them and the photos from your SiL.
ReplyDeleteThank you Linda, and you are very welcome. So glad you enjoyed them.
DeleteExtremely interesting text about a wonderful bird. Great photos.
ReplyDeleteThank you Lucyna :) Happy you enjoyed.
DeleteThey are such cool birds and your sister in law sure got some excellent shots! Thanks for sharing them with us :)
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Martha, she did see some very cool birds that day and took great photos :)
DeletePelicans are my most favorite of all birds and these photos are all amazing and I especially love the last two! So glad you shared them and that she sent them to you to share with us. We love to watch Pelicans while we sit on the beach. No matter what they do we like to watch them
ReplyDeleteThat's great Sandra :) I remember on my trips to Florida how much I enjoyed seeing the pelicans. They were everywhere! Such fun!
DeletePelicans are vey majestic fliers...beautiful to watch.
ReplyDeleteI agree, thanks Red :)
DeleteInteresting information but none of the photos will show for me - all blank!! :-(
ReplyDeleteKeep safe Diane
So sorry Diane, I am not sure why that would be. Hope you have been able to open them up by now. You stay safe too :)
DeleteInteresting information but none of the photos will show for me - all blank!! :-(
ReplyDeleteKeep safe Diane
Aha if I click on the blank photo I can view them in a separate screen - very odd. Great photos,
That is odd but glad you could at least see them :)
DeleteHi Denise,
ReplyDeleteI have spent many happy hours watching both Grey and Pink - backed Pelican in Africa, wonderful to watch in flight skimming the waves. Super series of images from your sister in law and some extremely interesting facts.
Thanks and you both stay safe.
John
Hi John, how wonderful! I do hope one day you will share your African photos. Glad you enjoyed my s-in-l's photos :) You are very welcome and you both stay safe too :)
DeleteThanks to Gregg's sister for the borrow of these images. I have only seen a few pelkiocans and they really are quite interesting and unusual birds.
ReplyDeleteI agree and I will :)
DeleteI love to see pelicans...which I seldom do. But just find them fascinating.
ReplyDeleteThe same here, the only time I do see them is when on a road trip :)
DeleteMany thanks for these lovely photographs :)
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
You are very welcome Jan :)
DeleteInteresting information and gorgeous photos!
ReplyDeleteThank you Christine :)
DeleteWonderful shots!
ReplyDeleteThanks William :)
DeleteWhat great photos and facts about the brown pelican, Denise! I've always thought them to be so graceful as they glide over the waves. So interesting about their center of gravity!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed them Martha Ellen :)
Deletethose photos are spectacular! I love spotting and capturing pelicans with my camera.
ReplyDeleteMe too and hope it won't be long before I can do just that :)
DeleteLovely photos of the pelicans, they are a beautiful bird, so large yet so graceful.
ReplyDeleteGood to read about them.
Yes I agree Margaret :)
DeleteThey are quite a sight aren't they Linda? :)
ReplyDeleteWow! Those close up shots are really, really impressive! Thank you for sharing them.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Kay :) I am happy you enjoyed them.
DeleteGreat photos and interesting Information
ReplyDeleteThank you Diane :)
DeleteThanks for this pelican parade! they are amazing birds and I hope to see them aagain and admire their antics - if ever COVID permits us to travel again. It has been a long haul and it is far from over.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome David, so glad you enjoyed. They are indeed amazing birds. Hope you are able to travel again soon :) Yes we still have a long road.
Delete