AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS FROM THE ARCHIVES

I am going back to January 2014 for this post and probably the first time I ever saw white pelicans. 

These were taken at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park in Florida, link here.

A lot of the birds are wild and tend to fly into the park in droves when it is feeding time for the resident birds. I don’t see any bands on their legs, so are assuming they are wild.

 I read that those bumps on their beaks appear on both male and female pelicans during breeding season, but once breeding season is over they fall off. These make them more attractive to prospective mates and it is called a nuptial tubercle. The photo below has two white ibis sharing the log with them.

Here are a few more facts. 

White pelicans have one of the largest wingspans of any North American bird at 9 feet.

White pelicans sometimes work together to herd fish to more shallow water where they can feast on them more easily.  

From the time an egg hatches until the bird leaves its nest and becomes independent, the parents provide 150 pounds of food.

White pelicans are pretty accomplished thieves, stealing from other pelicans and cormorants so they don’t have to do the work themselves.

They breed on islands in shallow wetlands with many other birds, including other white pelicans and also cormorants.

Unlike brown pelicans that fly high above the water and then dive down into the water to catch their prey, white pelicans get their body weight by feeding from the water surface, dipping their beaks into the water to snag fish and other aquatic animals.

White pelicans are one of the heaviest flying bird in the world. An average white pelican weighs between 7 to 20 pounds. 

Females lay 1 to 3 eggs in a slight depression in the ground. Both the male and female will incubate the eggs - not the other way other birds do, but with their giant orange feet. Eggs hatch in about a month and usually, only one will survive to leave the nest. Chicks leave the nest - fledge - when they are about 10 weeks old.

Except for the fact that males are slightly larger than females, the two appear identical. 

Thanks for looking and I hope you all have a happy Thursday.