Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus)

The Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) is a large waterbird of the family Pelecanidae, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia and New Guinea, also in Fiji, parts of Indonesia and as a vagrant to New Zealand. It is a predominantly white bird with black wings and a pink bill. It has been recorded as having the longest bill of any living bird. It mainly eats fish, but will also consume birds and scavenge for scraps.

Habitat
This species can occur in large expanses of Australia and Tasmania. Australian Pelicans occur primarily in large expanses of open water without dense aquatic vegetation. The habitats that can support them include large lakes, reservoirs, billabongs and rivers, as well as estuaries, swamps, temporarily flooded areas in arid zones, drainage channels in farmland, saltplans and coastal lagoons. The surrounding environment is unimportant: it can be forest, grassland, desert, estuarine mudflats, an ornamental city park, or industrial wasteland, provided only that there is open water able to support a sufficient supply of food. However, they do seem to prefer areas where disturbance is relatively low while breeding. They may also roost in mudflats, sandbars, beaches, reefs, jetties and piles.
The species became first known to occur in New Zealand from a specimen shot at Jerusalem in 1890 and small numbers of subfossil bones, the first found at Lake Grassmere in 1947, followed by records of other stray individuals. The bones were later described as a new (sub)species, Pelecanus (conspicillatus) novaezealandiae (Scarlett, 1966: "New Zealand Pelican") as they appeared to be larger, but Worthy (1998), reviewing new material, determined that they were not separable from the Australian population. These fossils were first found in 1930.
Australian Pelicans follow no particular schedule of regular movement, simply following the availability of food supplies. Drought frequently precedes movements. When the normally barren Lake Eyre filled during 1974 to 1976, for example, only a handful of pelicans remained around the coastal cities: when the great inland lakes dried again, the population dispersed once more, flocks of thousands being seen on the northern coasts. On some occasions, they are simply blown by the wind to new locations. It is a fairly regular visitor to the southern coast of New Guinea, as well as the Bismarck Islands and Solomon Islands. It occurs as a vagrant to Christmas Island, Vanuatu, Fiji, Palau and New Zealand. A population irruption occurred in 1978 into Indonesia, with Australian Pelicans reaching Sulawesi, Java and possibly also Sumatra.

Feeding
The bill and pouch of pelicans play an important role in feeding. The bill is sensitive and this helps locate fish in murky water. It also has a hook at the end of the upper mandible, probably for gripping slippery food items. When food is caught, the pelican manipulates it in its bill until the prey typically has its head pointing down the pelican's throat. Then with a jerk of the head the pelican swallows the prey. The bill is delicately built. The lower jaw consists of two thin and weakly articulated bones from which the pouch hangs. When fully extended, the bill can hold up to 13 litres. The pouch does not function as a place to hold food for any length of time. Instead it serves as a short-term collecting organ. Pelicans plunge their bills into the water, using their pouches as nets. Once something is caught, a pelican draws its pouch to its breast. This empties the water and allows the bird to manoeuvre the prey into a swallowing position. The pouch can also serve as a net to catch food thrown by humans, and there are sightings of pelicans drinking by opening their bill to collect rainwater.
The Australian Pelican may feed alone, but more often feeds as a cooperative group. Sometimes these groups are quite large. One group numbered over 1,900 birds. A flock of pelicans works together, driving fish into a concentrated mass using their bills and sometimes by beating their wings. The fish are herded into shallow water or surrounded in ever decreasing circles.

Breeding
Breeding depends on environmental conditions, particularly rainfall. Pelicans are colonial breeders with up to 40 000 individuals grouping on islands or secluded shores. Breeding begins with courtship. The female leads potential mates (two to eight or more) around the colony. As the males follow her in these walks, they threaten each other while swinging their open bills from side to side trying to attract the female's attention. The males may also pick up small objects, like sticks or dry fish, which they toss in the air and catch again, repeating the sequence several times.
Both sexes perform "pouch-rippling" in which they clap their bills shut several times a second and the pouch ripples like a flag in a strong breeze. As the courtship parade progresses, the males drop out one by one. Finally, after pursuits on land, water or in the air, only a single male is left. The female leads him to a potential nest site.
During the courtship period, the bill and pouch of the birds change colour dramatically. The forward half of the pouch becomes bright salmon pink, while the skin of the pouch in the throat region turns chrome yellow. Parts of the top and base of the bill change to cobalt blue, and a black diagonal strip appears from the base to the tip. This colour change is of short duration, the intensity usually subsiding by the time incubation starts.
The nest consists of a scrape in the ground prepared by the female. She digs the scrape with her bill and feet, and lines it with any scraps of vegetation or feathers within reach of the nest. Within three days egg-laying begins and eggs are laid two to three days apart. Both parents share incubation and the eggs are incubated on their feet.
The first-hatched chick is substantially larger than its siblings. It receives most of the food and may even attack and kill its nest mates. A newly hatched pelican has a large bill, bulging eyes, and skin that looks like small-grained bubble plastic. The skin around the face is mottled with varying degrees of black and the colour of the eyes varies from white to dark brown. This individual variation helps the parents to recognise their chick from hundreds of others.
The chicks leave their nests to form creches of up to 100 birds. They remain in creches for about two months, by the end of which they have learnt to fly and are fairly independent. Wild birds may live between ten and possibly 25 years or more.

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Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus)

The Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) is a massive member of the pelican family. It breeds from southeastern Europe to India and China in swamps and shallow lakes. The nest is a crude heap of vegetation.

No subspecies are known to exist over its wide range, but based on size differences, a Pleistocene paleosubspecies Pelecanus crispus palaeocrispus has been described from fossils recovered at Binagady, Azerbaijan.

Conservation measures have resulted in a population increase in Europe, particularly at the species's largest colony, at Lake Mikri Prespa in Greece, and also in other countries, following implementation of conservation actions. However, rapid population declines in the remainder of its range are suspected to be continuing and therefore the species is listed as Vulnerable.  

Habitat

The Dalmatian Pelican is found in lakes, rivers, deltas and estuaries. Compared to the Great White Pelican, the Dalmatian is not as tied to lowland areas and will nest in suitable wetlands at many elevations. It is less opportunistic in breeding habitat selection than the Great White, usually returning to a traditional breeding site year after year unless it becomes completely unsuitable. During the winter, the Dalmatian Pelican usually stays on ice-free lakes in Europe or jheels (seasonal lakes) in India. They also visit, typically during winter, inshore areas along sheletered coasts for feeding.

Breeding

Among a highly social family in general, Dalmatian Pelicans may have the least social of inclinations. This species naturally nests in relatively small group compared to most other pelican species and sometimes may even nest alone. However, small colonies are usually formed, which historically have included up to 250 pairs. Occasionally, Dalmatian Pelicans may mix in with colonies of Great White Pelicans. Nesting sites selected are usually either islands in large bodies of water (typically lagoons or river deltas) or dense mats of aquatic vegetation, such as extensive reedbeds of Phragmites and Typha. Due to their large size, these pelicans often trample the vegetation in the area surrounding their nests into the muddy substrate and thus nesting sites may become unsuitably muddy after around three years of usage.

The nest is a moderately-sized pile of grass, reeds, sticks and feathers, usually measuring about 1 m (3.3 ft) deep and 63 cm (25 in) across. Nests are usually located on or near the ground, often being placed on dense floating vegetation. Nests tend to be flimsy until cemented together by droppings. Breeding commences in March or April, about a month before the Great White Pelican breeds. The Dalmatian Pelican lays a clutch of 1 to 6 eggs, with two eggs being the norm. Eggs weigh between 120 and 195 g (4.2 and 6.9 oz). Incubation, which is spilt between both parents, lasts for 30 to 34 days. The chicks are born naked but soon sprout white down feathers. When the young are 6 to 7 weeks of age, the pelicans frequently gather in "pods". The offspring fledge at around 85 days and become independent at 100 to 105 days old. Nesting success relies on local environmental conditions, with any where from 58% to 100% of hatchlings successfully surviving to adulthood. The nesting sites often insure limited nest predation, though carnivorous mammals who eat egg and nestling can access nests when water levels are low enough for them to cross, as has been recorded with wild boars destroying nests in Bulgaria. Jackals, foxes, wolves, dogs and lynxes are also regular nest predators when water levels are low and White-tailed Eagles may attack pelicans at the colony to at least the size of fledgings. Sexual maturity is thought to be obtained at 3 or 4 years of age.

Feeding

This pelican feeds almost entirely on fish. Preferred prey species can include Common carp, European perch, Common rudd, eels, catfish (especially silurids during winter), mullet and Northern Pike, the latter having measured up to 50 cm (20 in) when taken. In the largest remnant colony, located in Greece, the preferred prey is reportedly the native Alburnus belvica. The Dalmatian Pelican requires around 1,200 g (2.6 lb) of fish per day and can take locally abundant smaller fish such as gobies, but usually ignore them in lieu of slightly larger fish. It usually forages alone or in groups of only twos or threes. It normally swims along, placidly and slowly, until it quickly dunks its head underwater and scoops the fish out, along with great masses of water. The water is dumped out of the sides of the pouch and the fish is swallowed. Occasionally it may feed cooperatively with other pelicans by corraling fish into shallow waters and may even cooperate similarly while fishing alongside cormorants in Greece. Occasionally, the pelican may not immediately eat the fish contained in its gular pouch, so it can save the prey for later consumption. Other small wetlands-dwellers may supplement the diet, including crustaceans, worms, beetles and small water birds, usually nestlings and eggs.

Description

This huge bird is the largest of the pelicans and one of the largest living bird species. It measures 160 to 183 cm (5 ft 3 in to 6 ft 0 in) in length, 9–15 kg (20–33 lb) in weight and 290–351 cm (9 ft 6 in–11 ft 6 in) in wingspan. With a mean weight of around 11.5 kg (25 lb), it is the world's heaviest flying bird species on average although large male bustards and swans can exceed the pelican in maximum weight.It also appears to have one of the largest wingspans of any living bird, rivaling those of the great albatrosses.

The somewhat similar-looking Great White Pelican is typically slightly smaller but the largest male individuals can be essentially the same size as a typical Dalmatian. However, the Dalmatian differs from this other very large species in that it has curly nape feathers, grey legs and silvery-white (rather than pure white) plumage. In winter, adult pelicans of this species go from silvery-gray to a dingier brownish-gray cream color. Immatures are grey and lack the pink facial patch of immature White Pelicans. The loose feathers around the forehead of the Dalmatian Pelican can form a W-like-shape on the face right above the bill. It has an orange-red lower mandible and pouch in the breeding season against a yellow upper mandible. In winter, the whole bill is somewhat dull yellow. The bill, at 36 to 45 cm (14 to 18 in) long, is the second largest of any bird, after the Australian Pelican. The bare skin around the eye can vary from yellow to purplish in color. Among standard measurements, compared to the Great White Pelican, the Dalmatian's tarsus is slightly shorter, at 11.6 to 12.2 cm (4.6 to 4.8 in), but its tail and wing chord length are notably larger, at 22 to 24 cm (8.7 to 9.4 in) long and 68 to 80 cm (27 to 31 in), respectively. When the Dalmatian Pelican is in in flight, unlike other pelicans, the wings are all grayish-white but for black wing tips. While on the wing, it is an elegant soaring bird and, if in a flock, all the members of it will move in graceful synchrony. The neck is then held back like a heron's in flight. It is the largest surviving creature that can fly.

The Dalmatian Pelican is often silent, as are most pelicans, although it can be fairly vocal during the mating season. At this time, they may engage in a wide range of guttural, deep vocalisations including barks, hisses and grunts.

Distribution

Pelecanus crispus breeds in eastern Europe and east-central Asia, in Serbia and Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Ukraine, Mongolia, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

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Great White Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus)

The Great White Pelican is a huge bird, with only the Dalmatian Pelican averaging larger amongst the pelicans. The wingspan can from 226 to 360 cm (7.41 to 11.8 ft), with the latter measurement the largest recorded among extant flying animals outside of the great albatrosses. The total length of the Great White Pelican can range from 140 to 180 cm (55 to 71 in), with the enormous bill comprising 28.9 to 47.1 cm (11.4 to 18.5 in) of that length. Adult males, weigh from 9 to 15 kg (20 to 33 lb), though large races from the Palaearctic are usually around 11 kg (24 lb) with few exceeding 13 kg (29 lb). Females are considerably less bulky and heavy, weighing from 5.4 to 9 kg (12 to 20 lb). Among standard measurements, the wing chord length is 60 to 73 cm (24 to 29 in), the tail is 16 to 21 cm (6.3 to 8.3 in) and the tarsus is 13 to 14.9 cm (5.1 to 5.9 in). The standard measurements from differing areas indicate that pelicans of the species from the Western Palaearctic are somewhat larger in size than ones that reside in Asia and in Africa.

Immature Great White Pelicans are grey and have dark flight feathers. In flight, it is an elegant soaring bird, with the head held close to and aligned with the body by a downward bend in the neck. In breeding condition the male has pinkish skin on its face and the female has orangey skin. It differs from the Dalmatian Pelican by its pure white, rather than greyish-white, plumage, a bare pink facial patch around the eye and pinkish legs. Males are larger than females, and have a long beak that grows in a downwards arc, as opposed to the shorter, straighter beak of the female. The Spot-billed Pelican of Asia is slightly smaller than the Great White, with clear brownish-grey plumage and a paler, duller-colored bill. Similarly, the Pink-backed Pelican is smaller with brownish-grey plumage, with a light pink to off-grey bill and a pinkish wash to the back.

The Great White Pelican is well adapted for aquatic life. The short strong legs and webbed feet propel it in water and aid the rather awkward takeoff from the water surface. Once aloft, the long-winged pelicans are powerful fliers, however, and often travel in spectacular V-formation groups.

Habitat

The fishing technique of these birds demands the shallow, warm water of lakes, deltas, marshes and swamps. In Europe and Asia the great white pelican is found on freshwater wetlands with abundant reed beds and grasses for nesting. In Africa the great white pelican is also found in alkaline lakes

Breeding

The breeding season commences in April or May in temperate zones, essentially all year around in Africa and begins in February through April in India. Large numbers of these pelicans breed together in colonies. The female can lay from 1 to 4 eggs in a clutch, with two being the average. Nest locations are variable. Some populations making stick nests in trees but a majority, including all those who breed in Africa, nest exclusively in scrapes on the ground lined with grass, sticks, feathers and other material. The young are cared for by both parents. The incubation stage lasts for 29 to 36 days. The chicks are naked when they hatch but quickly sprout blackish-brown down. The colony gathers in "pods" around 20 to 25 days after the eggs hatch. The young fledge at 65 to 75 days of age. Around 64% of young successful reach adulthood, with sexual maturity attained at 3 to 4 years of age. White Pelicans are often protected from bird-eating raptors by virtue of their own great size, but eagles, especially sympatric Haliaeetus species, may predate their eggs, nestlings and fledgings. Occasionally, pelicans and their young are attacked at their colonies by mammalian carnivores from jackals to lions. As is common in pelicans, the close approach of a large predaceous or unknown mammal, including a human, at a colony will lead the pelican to abandon their nest in self-preservation. Additionally, crocodiles, especially Nile crocodiles in Africa, will readily kill and eat swimming pelicans

Range

Sedentary populations are found year-round in Africa, south of the Sahara Desert. Migratory populations are found from Eastern Europe to Kazakstan during the breeding season and from northeast Africa through Iraq to north India in the winter. Great white pelicans have also been seen in southern Vietnam

Feeding Behaviour

The diet of the Great White Pelican consists mainly of fish. The pelicans leave their roost to feed early in the mornings and may fly over 100 km (62 mi) in search of food, as has been observed in Chad and Mogode, Cameroon. Each pelican needs from 0.9 to 1.4 kg (2.0 to 3.1 lb) of fish every day. This corresponds to around 28,000,000 kg (62,000,000 lb) of fish consumed every year at the largest colony of Great White Pelicans, on Tanzania's Lake Rukwa, with almost 75000 birds. Fish targeted are usually fairly large ones, in the 500–600 g (1.1–1.3 lb) weight range, and are taken based on regional abundance. Common Carp are preferred in Europe, mullet are preferred in China and Aphanius dispar (a carp) are preferred in India. In Africa, often the commonest cichlids, including many species in the Haplochromis and Tilapia genera, seem to be preferred. The pelican's pouch serves simply as a scoop. As the pelican pushes its bill underwater, the lower bill bows out, creating a large pouch which fills with water and fish. As the bird lifts its head, the pouch contracts, forcing out the water but retaining the fish. A group of 6 to 8 great white pelicans will gather in a horseshoe formation in the water to feed together. They dip their bills in unison, creating a circle of open pouches, ready to trap every fish in the area. Most feeding is cooperative and done in groups, especially in shallow waters where fish schools can be corraled easily, though these pelicans may forage alone as well.

Pelicans are not restricted to fish, however, and are often opportunistic foragers. In some situations they eat chicks of other birds, such as the well documented case off the southwest coast of South Africa. Here breeding Pelicans from the Dassen Island colony predate chicks weighing up to 2 kg (4.4 lb) from the Cape Gannet colony on Malgas Island. Similarly, in Walvis Bay, Namibia the eggs and chicks of Cape Cormorants are fed regularly to young pelicans. The local pelican population is so reliant on the cormorants, that when the cormorant species experienced a population decline, the numbers of pelicans appeared to decline as well. Great White Pelicans also eat crustaceans, tadpoles and even turtles. They readily accept handouts from humans, and a number of unusual items have been recorded in their diet. During periods of starvation, pelicans also eat seagulls and ducklings. The gulls are held under water and drowned before being eaten headfirst. Pelicans will also rob other birds of their prey.

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American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)

The American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) is a large aquatic bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America, in winter.

Description

The American White Pelican rivals the Trumpeter Swan as the longest bird native to North America. Both very large and plump, it has an overall length is about 50–70 in (130–180 cm), courtesy of the huge beak which measures 11.3–15.2 in (290–390 mm) in males and 10.3–14.2 in (260–360 mm) in females. It has a wingspan of about 95–120 in (240–300 cm). The species also has the second largest average wingspan of any North American bird, after the California Condor. Body weight can range between 9.2 and 30 lb (4.2 and 14 kg), although typically these birds average between 11 and 20 lb (5.0 and 9.1 kg). Among standard measurements, the wing chord measures 20–26.7 in (51–68 cm) and the tarsus measures 3.9–5.4 in (9.9–14 cm) long. The plumage is almost entirely bright white, except the black primary and secondary remiges, which are hardly visible except in flight. From early spring until after breeding has finished in mid-late summer, the breast feathers have a yellowish hue. After moulting into the eclipse plumage, the upper head often has a grey hue, as blackish feathers grow between the small wispy white crest.

The bill is huge and flat on the top, with a large throat sac below, and, in the breeding season, is vivid orange in color as is the iris, the bare skin around the eye, and the feet. In the breeding season, there is a laterally flattened "horn" on the upper bill, located about one-third the bill's length behind the tip. This is the only one of the eight species of pelican to have a bill "horn". The horn is shed after the birds have mated and laid their eggs. Outside of the breeding season the bare parts become duller in color, with the naked facial skin yellow and the bill, pouch, and feet an orangy-flesh color.

Apart from the difference in size, males and females look exactly alike. Immature birds have light grey plumage with darker brownish nape and remiges. Their bare parts are dull grey. Chicks are naked at first, then grow white down feathers all over, before moulting to the immature plumage.

Fact

The White Pelican does not dive for fish as the Brown Pelican does. Instead, it dips its head underwater to scoop up fish. Several pelicans may fish cooperatively, moving into a circle to concentrate fish, and then dipping their heads under simultaneously to catch fish.

Length

50–65 in

127–165 cm

Wingspan

96.1–114.2 in

244–290 cm

Weight

158.7–317.5 oz

4500–9000 g

Other Names

Pelican (blanc) d¿Amerique (French)

Pelicano Norteamericano (Spanish) 

Habitat

Breeds mainly on isolated islands in freshwater lakes, forages on inland marshes, lakes, or rivers, favoring shallows. Islands used for breeding are often 30 or more miles from foraging areas. During the nonbreeding season, American White Pelicans favor shallow coastal bays, inlets, and estuaries.

Food

The American White Pelican forages mainly on fish in shallow wetlands; crayfish, tadpoles and salamanders are also eaten. Researchers have found regurgitated fish hooks and lures in colonies, suggesting that pelicans also take game fish that have been injured or slowed by anglers.

Nesting

The nest is a shallow depression with a low rim that the bird forms while it is sitting, by raking up gravel, soil, or nearby vegetation with its bill. The nest bottom consists of the same material, and vegetative insulation or lining within the nest is rare.

Nests in colonies on islands that aren’t subject to regular flooding. The eggs are typically laid on bare gravel, sand, or soil with little vegetation in the immediate area. In forested regions, the American White Pelican sometimes will nest under either deciduous or coniferous trees. 

Behaviour

The American White Pelican is a graceful flier, either singly, in flight formations, or soaring on thermals in flocks. They soar in different portions of thermals for different distances: wandering flights in lower portions of a thermal, commuting flights at middle heights, and cross-country flights in the upper reaches of thermal columns. They are skilled swimmers, but they do not plunge-dive for prey like their coastal relatives the Brown Pelican. Instead they make shallow dives from the surface of the water or just plunge their heads underwater. They often hunt for food in groups in shallow water. 

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Pink-backed Pelican (Pelecanus rufescens)

The Pink-backed Pelican (Pelecanus rufescens) is a member of the pelican family of birds. It is a resident breeder in Africa, southern Arabia and apparently extinct in Madagascar in swamps and shallow lakes.

Description

This is a relatively small pelican though by no means a small bird. The size difference is apparent besides the sympatric Great White Pelican as well as its grayish as opposed to white plumage. Length is from 125 to 155 cm (49 to 61 in), wingspan is 2.15–2.9 m (7.1–9.5 ft) and body mass if from 4 to 7 kg (8.8 to 15 lb). The bill is 30 to 38 cm (12 to 15 in) in length. The plumage is grey and white, with a pinkish hue on the back occasionally apparent (never in the deep pink of a flamingo). The top of the bill is yellow and the pouch is usually greyish. Breeding adults have long feather plumes on the head.

Habitat

Found in a range of aquatic habitats, but prefers quiet backwaters with shallow water, avoiding steep, vegetated lake banks. It prefers for freshwater lakes, swamps, large slow-flowing rivers, and seasonal pools but also frequents reservoirs, seasonally flooded land3 and flood-plains near river mouths. It may occur on alkaline and saline lakes and lagoons, and can sometimes be found along the coast in bays1 and estuaries2, 3, 5 (although seldom on open seashore). The species tends to roost and breed in trees (e.g. mangroves), but will also roost on sandy islands, cliffs, coral reefs and sand-dunes.

Nesting
Nesting trees have many nests built close together, these nests are re-used every year until often the trees collapse although the birds will normally remain in the area. The species nests colonially in trees, reeds or low bushes along waterfronts as well as (less often) on the ground on sandy islands and in mangroves.

The nest is a large heap of sticks, into which two to three large white eggs are laid. The chicks feed by plunging their heads deep into the adult’s pouch and taking the partially digested regurgitated fish, and may be 10-50 m above the ground.

Food

Fish - piscivore, frogs - ranivore, insects - insectivore

They feed on a variety of foods, including small invertebrates and amphibians but their main food is fish. Only the brown pelican dives into the water from the air. All the other species plunge their heads under the water whilst floating on the surface and fill their pouches with fish and water. They then shake the water out of the end of their beak and swallow the fish whole. Sometimes they will move away from water into drier areas to feed on locusts.

Range
Monotypic. Africa, Seychelles and southwestern Arabia; extinct in Madagascar.

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