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Pelecanus occidentalis

(American brown pelican)

Overview

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Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Czech:

Pelik

Common Names in Danish:

Brun Pelikan

Common Names in Dutch:

Bruine Pelikaan

Common Names in English:

American brown pelican, Brown Pelican, common pelican

Common Names in Estonian:

Pruunpelikan

Common Names in Finnish:

Ruskopelikaani

Common Names in French:

Pélican brun

Common Names in German:

Braunpelikan

Common Names in Guadeloupean Creole :

Grand Gosier

Common Names in Haitian Creole French:

Gangozye

Common Names in Italian:

Pellicano Bruno

Common Names in Japanese:

Kasshokuperikan, カッショクペリカン

Common Names in Latin:

Pelecanus fuscus, Pelecanus occidentalis

Common Names in Lithuanian:

Rudasis Pelikanas

Common Names in Norwegian:

Brunpelikan

Common Names in Polish:

Pelikan Brunatny

Common Names in Portuguese:

Pelicano-Do-Mar, Pelicano-Pardo

Common Names in Portuguese (Brazil):

Pelicano-Do-Mar, Pelicano-Pardo

Common Names in Slovak:

Pelik

Common Names in Spanish:

Alacatraz, Flamenco, Pel, PelÌcano pardo

Common Names in Spanish (Costa Rica):

Pelicano Pardo

Common Names in Spanish (Cuba):

Alcatraz

Common Names in Spanish (Honduras):

Flamenco

Common Names in Spanish (Mexico):

Pel, Pelicano Caf

Common Names in Spanish (Nicaragua):

Pel

Common Names in Swedish:

Brun Pelikan

Description

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Physical Description

Adult : Head : white Face : Eye Color: pale yellow Facial Skin : grayish Bill: yellowish gray with scarlet cast on distal portion, and yellow tip Lower Mandible: blackish pouch Neck: white Hindneck: dark chestnut Body: Belly: blackish brown Breast: blackish brown Upperparts: silvery frosting on gray-brown Legs : Foot Color: black Foot Shape: webbed Leg Color: black.Breeding: Head: white with yellowish tinge Face: Eye Color: pale yellow Eye Ring: reddish Facial Skin: grayish Bill: rosy tinge. yellowish gray with scarlet cast on distal portion, and yellow tip Lower Mandible: blackish pouch Neck: black Hindneck: dark chestnut Body: Belly: blackish brown Breast: blackish brown Upperparts: silvery frosting on gray-brown Legs: Foot Color: black Foot Shape: webbed Leg Color: black.Immature: Head: brown Face: Eye Color: pale yellow Eye Ring: reddish Facial Skin: grayish Bill: Lower Mandible: blackish pouch Neck: black Hindneck: dark chestnut Body: Belly: white Breast: blackish brown Upperparts: brown Legs: Foot Color: black Foot Shape: webbed Leg Color: black.

Color:

Adult alternate: · White foreneck and head with yellow crown · Chestnut neck and nape · Gray-brown body plumage with slightly darker flight feathers

Adult basic: · Yellowish crown · White head and neck · Gray-brown body plumage with slightly darker flight feathers

Immature : · Dark brown overall, gradually acquiring adult plumage over three years

Size/Age/Growth

About 48 to 50 inches long, with a wingspan of 78 to 84 inches. Adults weigh about 131.2 ounces .

Habitat

Coastal shores .

Vegetation: freshwater marshes, coastal waters • Foraging Strata: Water • Center of Abundance: Lower tropical: lowlands, lower than 500 m.; tropics. • Sensitivity to Disturbance: High

Typically found in a lake at a mean distance from sea level of 6 meters (19 feet).[1]

Ecology: This species inhabits shallow inshore waters , estuaries and bays , avoiding the open sea . Its diet is comprised mostly of fish, causing great congregations in areas with abundant prey . Prey species include sardines and anchovies , but has been seem to take shrimps and carrion , and even nestling egrets. It regularly feeds by plunge-diving and is often the victim of kleptoparasites. The timing of breeding varies depending on latitude , breeding in spring in the extreme north of its range compared to all year round in the tropics. Brown Pelicans are colonial , with some colonies being maintained over several years. It mostly nests on the ground , sometimes on cliffs and less often in small trees or bushes. Movements and migrations depend on local conditions (e.g. northern populations migrate south)1.

[2].

List of Habitats :

[more info]

Biology

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Diet

Various species of fish and crustaceans.

Reproduction

Brown Pelicans nest in large colonies in trees , bushes, or even on the ground .

Clutch Size: 3 Length of Incubation : 28-30 days Days to Fledge : 71-88 Number of Broods: 1

Migration

Migratory

Taxonomy

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Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 24-Jun-1996

Similar Species

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American White Pelican, Northern Gannet

Members of the genus Pelecanus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 16 species and subspecies in this genus:

P. conspicillatus (Australasian Pelican) · P. crispus (Dalamatian Pelican) · P. erythrorhynchos (American White Pelecan) · P. novaezealandiae (New Zealand Pelican) · P. occidentalis (American Brown Pelican) · P. occidentalis californicus (Brown Pelican) · P. occidentalis carolinensis (Brown Pelican) · P. occidentalis occidentalis (Brown Pelican) · P. occidentalis thagus (Brown Pelican) · P. occidentalis urinator (Brown Pelican) · P. onocrotalus (Eastern White Pelican) · P. philippensis (Spot-Billed Pelican) · P. philippensis philippensis (Spot-Billed Pelican) · P. roseus (Rosy Pelican) · P. rufescens (Pink-Backed Pelican) · P. thagus (Chilean Brown Pelican)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal December 09, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Standard Deviation = 386.380 based on 10,855 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
  2. BirdLife International 2009. Pelecanus occidentalis. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 03 February 2012. [back]
Last Revised: 7/16/2012