A Flotilla of Over 250 Hungry White Pelicans… The Everglades

/ Curt Mekemson
Peggy and I were leaving the Everglades last week when we drove by a small pond that had at least 250 white pelicans working their way back and forth across the pond, herding fish, and downing them as they went.

Having lived in California and Oregon with occasional trips to Washington and the west coast of Mexico for most of my life, I have spent hours watching brown pelicans make their impressive dives into the Pacific Ocean capturing fish. White pelicans are much leas common in the West and have a very different approach to fishing. They don’t dive. Instead, they herd fish as a group, scooping them up as they go. Peggy and I had only seen this process once before. We were at Morro Bay on California’s Central Coast and watched a half dozen white pelicans form a semi-circle and herd fish toward shallower waters. Imagine our surprise when we passed by a pond that had between 200-300 swimming back and forth in unison!

As we were driving by, this is what we saw. More pelicans were off to the right and other birds could be seen in the background. Peggy was driving. She slammed on the brakes and backed up. What you can’t see were all of the mosquitoes and biting flies. Grin.
The Pelicans would cross the pond in one direction and then come back the other way. Great egrets, cattle egrets and snowy egrets were some of the birds seen in the background.
Going in the other direction.
A close up of the action.
And another.
When white pelicans capture a fish, they also get a bill full of water. They then raise their bill to let the water drain out before they swallow the fish.
Some of the other birds. I think the pink flash was a Roseate Spoonbill.
Given the black legs on this bird, I’m guessing it is a great egret.
A final photo of the magical pond.

Friday’s post will feature baboons.

26 thoughts on “A Flotilla of Over 250 Hungry White Pelicans… The Everglades”

  1. I’ve seen this behavior a few times, but only once with so many pelicans: down at the Lydia Ann Channel in Port Aransas. It’s an amazing thing to witness. I never see it around here, partly because we have many fewer white pelicans, and those only in winter. But the brown pelicans are everywhere, and I even get to watch them diving for fish in my ‘office.’

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    • I’ve always found brown pelicans a delight to watch, Linda, up and down the west coast and even more so in Puerto Vallarta, but the white pelicans fishing were a new experience for me, except for my minor encounter in Morro Bay. And wow. As for brown pelicans, I’m jealous of your office view. Grin. Do you remember when they were almost wiped out because of DDT. That’s one of the things that brought me into the environmental movement.

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  5. These photos are wonderful. And while I love seeing such a mass of white pelicans, which I have never seen, I am also struck by how many other magnificent birds were there. What a great trip to Florida you had.

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  6. Curt, I’m smiling at the ease of the phrase that you happened to be driving past when Peggy spotted these white Pelicans! We happen to see a pigeon or a gull! Good on Peggy for slamming on the brakes and going back for a closer look (and photos!) The images are wonderful and what team work by the Pelicans – truly magnificent!

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  7. Pelicans are such a strange looking bird! Here’s my little story…I was standing by what I thought was a pillar in the Frankfurt Zoo…looked across and a huge pelican was looking back at me! Have you been to the zoo there? Quite an experience! You mentioned Washington State…did you live here? I think I may have told you that I live in Olympia and can see the Capitol dome from my living room window! Thank you for your lovely pictures!

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    • Haven’t been to the Frankfurt zoo, but Peggy lived in Frankfurt for a while in her previous marriage. I’ve never lived in Washington, but in addition to California and Oregon, I’ve lived in Alaska. Our niece lives in Olympia.

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  10. Oh wow! What a lucky and amazing experience. I bet you were both excited. I would have been.
    It reminds me of the time Don and I saw hundreds of snow geese on an island near Vancouver, resting on their annual migration south.
    Alison

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