Pelecanidae

A small group of fish-eating waterbirds, the pelicans are known for their unique 'pouch', used for scooping up prey.

Additional information

Pelicans typically fish while swimming, by scooping water into the throat pouch. Flocks often hunt cooperatively, herding fish into a circle and then scooping them up. Brown Pelican (P. occidentalis) plunge-dives from the air to seize prey. The birds fly with flaps and long glides, the head resting on the back and the bill on the foreneck, and rise high on thermals. Flock movements are highly coordinated, with birds flying in loose lines or 'V's.

The birds breed in colonies on islands or in marshes. Human disturbance at colonies has greatly reduced many populations, as in Dalmatian Pelican (P. cripsus, now Endangered) and Spot-billed Pelican (P. philippensis), which have declined from millions to just a few thousand birds.

Taxonomy

This family comprises 7 species, all belonging to the genus Pelecanus.

• P. onocrotalus (Great White Pelican)
• P. rufescens (Pink-backed Pelican)
• P. philippensis (Spot-billed Pelican)
• P. cripsus (Dalmatian Pelican)
• P. conspicillatus (Australian Pelican)
• P. erythrorhynchos (American White Pelican)
• P. occidentalis (Brown Pelican)

Pelicans are perhaps more closely related to the stork (family Ciconiidae) and the herons (Ardeidae) than to other 'pelecaniform' birds: their closest living relative appears to be the African Shoebill (Balaeniceps rex). One subspecies of Brown Pelican, P. o. thagus, is often recognized as a full species, Chilean or Peruvian Pelican.