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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON
NAME: |
brown
pelican |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Aves |
| ORDER: |
Pelecaniformes |
| FAMILY: |
Pelecanidae |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Pelecanus
(a pelican) occidentalis (from the western
hemisphere) |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
The
brown pelican is a large, grayish-brown bird with
a blackish belly and a white head and neck. It has
a long beak with a thin, membranous pouch. |
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| SIZE: |
Approximately
120 cm (48 in.) tall; 210 cm (84 in.) wide |
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| WEIGHT: |
Approximately
2.7-3.18 kg (6-7 lb.) |
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| DIET: |
Includes
fish and surface minnows |
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| INCUBATION: |
28-30
days |
| CLUTCH
SIZE |
1-3
eggs |
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| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
Approximately
2.5-3 years |
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| RANGE: |
American Pacific coast from western Canada to northern
Peru and American Atlantic coast from northern United
States to northern Brazil; within range, migratory
movement from northern to southern regions occurs |
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| HABITAT: |
Primarily
found along coasts and in bays and estuaries |
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| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
Unknown |
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| STATUS: |
IUCN |
Endangered
(Except along Atlantic coast and Alabama) |
| CITES |
Not listed |
| USFWS |
Not listed |
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| 1. |
Brown
pelicans are the only species to dive into the water
from 30 feet 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. |
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| 2. |
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 theirbuoyancy
in the water. |
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| 3. |
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. |
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| 4. |
They
have an extendable sac of skin at the base of their
throat, which is capable of holding up to 3 gallons
of water, several times more than their belly. |
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| 5. |
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
30-40 million years. |
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| 6. |
The
brown pelican, the smallest of the Pelecanidae family,
can fly up to 30 mph. |
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| 7. |
Its
gular pouch may be used to disperse heat as well
as to collect fish and rainwater. |
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| 8. |
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. |
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Pelicans
have attracted human attention for centuries.
Their images are widely used as caricatures for
commercial enterprises such as hotels, restaurants,
toys, and books.
They
are primarily birds of warm climates and breed
mainly in isolated areas away from predation and
human disturbance. Pelicans require large quantities
of food daily. Food supply is often a limiting
factor in pelican distribution and range. Fortunately,
pelicans feed mainly on "trash" fish
that have little to no commercial or sporting
value. Nevertheless, pelicans are often victims
of fishing hooks and lines, oil spills, pesticides,
guns, arrows, cars, boats, and power lines.
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|
| McCauley,
J. R. Field Guide to the Birds of North America.
National Geographic Society Pub. 1983. |
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Perrins, C. M. and A.L.A. Middleton. The Encyclopedia
of Birds. Facts of File Pub., New York. 1985. |
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Todd, F. S. 10,001 Titillating Tidbits of Avian
Trivia. Ibis Pub. Co., California. 1994.
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| USFWS
Endangered Species: http://ecos.fws.gov/species_profile/SpeciesProfile?spcode=B02L |
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