If you have been following this blog for a while, you know that Peggy and I love pelicans. They can appear and act a bit strange. It’s what makes them so attractive to us. We like weird. It wasn’t clear what this one was up to. Scratching an itch? Waving to us? Practicing a crash landing? Whatever, we were lucky to catch it in mid-acton. At the time we were visiting Cabo San Lucas on the the tip of the Baja Peninsula.This one was swimming around in the water nearby. The sharp tip on the end of its bill is called a nail, as in nailed it, to help in catching fish and assuring that they don’t escape from the pouch.A handsome fellow— in pelican terms— was watching the action. Note the big feet. Brown Pelicans use them to incubate their eggs, placing them on top of the egg instead of using their warm feathers and body heat like every other bird we can think of. Mom and Pop actually make good parents. The male brings in nesting material; the female builds the nest. Both participate in incubating the eggs, and both help in feeding the nestlings, i.e. they spew regurgitated fish into the nest. It’s a potluck.Graceful, huh. Brown pelicans dive into the water to catch dinner. Style is not required. They start their dive from as high as 60 feet up in the air and plummet straight down, turning their neck just before hitting the water to avoid injury. Peggy and I were watching a feeding frenzy of around 50 pelicans on the Bahía de Banderas, the bay off of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico when we took this photo and the next one.It was insane. The large pouch of a pelican can hold up to two gallons of water. As soon as the water drains, it swallows whatever it has caught. A two part stomach system then processes the fish to make them palatable. We couldn’t help but think that this pelican was celebrating— not only because it had caught a fish, but also because it was out of the melee. Woohoo!We watched a youngster on the Rio Cuale in Puerto Vallarta. Its body had a ways to go to catch up with the size of its bill. I think it was trying to scare up a meal. Or take a bath.The west coast of California, Oregon and Washington also provides numerous opportunities for watching brown pelicans. At one time these magnificent birds were almost extinct because of the poison DDT used widely by farmers to protect their crops from insects. With the banning of the poison, the birds are now off of the endangered species list and number over 600,000 worldwide. This, and the next three photos were taken on the Carpinteria Beach south of Santa Barbara, California.Looking dignified. A committee perhaps? Or maybe a board of directors. Note how three in front have placed their bills to the right. Takeoff on runway 1.You have probably seen brown pelicans in a neat line as they gracefully fly over waves. That wasn’t the case here. We were thinking, ‘Where’s the air traffic controller?’This is another one of those, “What the…” photos. Napping perhaps while resting its heavy head on its back? Catching a few rays on his pouch? We took this photo on a San Diego beach 17 years ago.Peggy and I were driving by a small pond in the Florida Everglades National Park last year when we spotted close to two hundred white pelicans stretched out in a long line, several pelicans deep. While brown pelicans dive for their fish dinners, white pelicans work together in a coordinated effort to herd fish into groups that makes them easier to catch. Most of these are peering into the water, watching and waiting. When a fish swims within reach, they strike using their broad pouches as a trap. It’s kind of like catching a butterfly with a butterfly net. The pelican on the top right has succeeded. Its pouch is still full of water.Success. Several pelicans are in various phases of swallowing their catch here. The roundup was apparently a success. The white pelican is one of the largest birds in North America with a wing span of up to 9 feet. While brown pelicans primarily catch their fish out of coastal waters, white pelicans can be found on lakes far inland. Shallow water where they can herd fish more easily is preferred.Our favorite pelican of all times was Petros, the well-loved white pelican of the Greek Island of Mykonos. We were wandering around the Mediterranean Sea several years ago with Peggy’s brother John, his wife Frances and friends when we met him. The original Petros passed on in 1986 but he has been replaced by at least a couple since. One was donated by Jackie Kennedy-Onassis.Petros and his successors have been living on Mykonos for 70 years, capturing the hearts of locals and visitors alike.I’ll conclude today’s post with my favorite photo of Petros. With the end of 2025 rapidly approaching, we will use our next three posts to focus on our three major trips of 2025: Hawaii, the Southwest, and New England.
19 thoughts on “One Dives Weird for Dinner, the Other Herds It: Brown and White Pelicans… The Focus Series”
That last photo is magnificent, Curt. A neat story about Petros, and I’m just as pleased even knowing there is a new one every so often. It was news to me that white pelicans herd fish to make them easier to catch. That is pretty cool. I just heard a news story last night on the BBC about whales and dolphins hunting together because they both use sound and have a better hunt when cooperating. Isn’t nature wonderful?
Anyway, despite all this cool stuff, brown pelicans are my favourite. Probably because i know them best and have many memories and photos of them. ❤
The first time I ever watched white pelicans herding was in Morrow Bay, California, Crystal. I wondered ‘what in the heck are they doing?’ I’d never seen anything like we saw in Florida, however.
One fun story that I read about Petros was that another Greek island kidnapped him once. The two islands almost went to war over it!
And yes, nature is wonderful!
I’m with you on brown pelicans. For the same reasons. I love the grace that they fly over waves with as well as the way they dive. They both amuse and impress me.
What a great story about the kidnapping!! It makes me think of when rival colleges kidnap a college mascot.
Pelicans! They are enormous! While visiting the zoo in Frankfurt millions of year’s ago, I was standing close to one and it was kind of alarming how big that bill is! Wow! Here’s to a New Year coming up and new travels for you two. I am sitting in my cozy apartment while it rains, again, floods more…this is all very sad news here. Take good care and I will wait to see what you two are up to soon! Ya know, a pelican could really make a score at at a buffet! Love to you both!
I saw that the Northwest was getting hit pretty hard. Not much weather to report from here other than it was 11° this morning. Pelicans are just a kick to watch and photograph, Wendy. I can never get enough. Here’s hoping it dries out for the holidays for you and you have a great one. We’ll be in Texas with Peggy’s brother and wife. Looking forward to having you along in 2026. So far our planes include Scotland and Bali… worlds apart, so to speak.
On our first trip to the Virgin Islands in the 70s, I took so many photos of brown pelicans [with a film camera no less] that for many years we referred to anything done in excess as “pelican pictures.” Then in 2014, we went to Antarctica and saw penguins. 😁
Laughing, Ray. I totally get it. Mine would have to be deer, but only because we had a heard that lived on our property and were always looking in our windows. Could never resist taking a photo of that.
Great images! Pelicans are so fun. You should submit some of these to the comedy wildlife photos contest. I was actually just looking at the 2025 ones yesterday, and they’re always amusing.
The gorilla was great, as were several others. I almost spit out my coffee when I saw the lion cub that thought his dad’s danglies were toys to attack. I watched a fawn outside our home in Oregon once mistake a buck’s appendages for his mom’s source of milk. I swear the buck jumped five feet into the air.
We have both species here, although the white pelicans are with us only in winter. There are some local pilings at the edge of the bay where some always line up; it’s a real treat to watch them migrate in, wheeling in groups high in the sky. The brown are with us all year, although we have some migrants as well. We see both juvenile and adult brown ones. They often fish in some of the marinas where I work, but never in groups. There might be two or three, but that’s about the limit, probably because of the narrow spaces they have to dive into. They are great fun to watch, though!
That’s one reason I never take my camera to work. I’d be utterly distracted, all the time. The other reason, of course, is that the chances of my dropping it into the water aren’t zero!
Don’t think I could resist the temptation, Linda. I always worry a bit when I have my camera along when kayaking, or on any boat. But it doesn’t stop me. Just too many good photo ops out there. And, I’ve discovered, the wildlife doesn’t seem nearly as skittish.
Of course, you probably could afford to replace your camera. I couldn’t!
They are huge birds, Curt! All amazing photos, and they sure are intriguing and fascinating! And their pouches can hold two gallons of water? Wow! I think of how heavy water is while carrying it on backpacking trips. :)Thanks for all the facts and fun!
Wandering through Time and Place 
That last photo is magnificent, Curt. A neat story about Petros, and I’m just as pleased even knowing there is a new one every so often. It was news to me that white pelicans herd fish to make them easier to catch. That is pretty cool. I just heard a news story last night on the BBC about whales and dolphins hunting together because they both use sound and have a better hunt when cooperating. Isn’t nature wonderful?
Anyway, despite all this cool stuff, brown pelicans are my favourite. Probably because i know them best and have many memories and photos of them. ❤
The first time I ever watched white pelicans herding was in Morrow Bay, California, Crystal. I wondered ‘what in the heck are they doing?’ I’d never seen anything like we saw in Florida, however.
One fun story that I read about Petros was that another Greek island kidnapped him once. The two islands almost went to war over it!
And yes, nature is wonderful!
I’m with you on brown pelicans. For the same reasons. I love the grace that they fly over waves with as well as the way they dive. They both amuse and impress me.
What a great story about the kidnapping!! It makes me think of when rival colleges kidnap a college mascot.
Pelicans! They are enormous! While visiting the zoo in Frankfurt millions of year’s ago, I was standing close to one and it was kind of alarming how big that bill is! Wow! Here’s to a New Year coming up and new travels for you two. I am sitting in my cozy apartment while it rains, again, floods more…this is all very sad news here. Take good care and I will wait to see what you two are up to soon! Ya know, a pelican could really make a score at at a buffet! Love to you both!
I saw that the Northwest was getting hit pretty hard. Not much weather to report from here other than it was 11° this morning. Pelicans are just a kick to watch and photograph, Wendy. I can never get enough. Here’s hoping it dries out for the holidays for you and you have a great one. We’ll be in Texas with Peggy’s brother and wife. Looking forward to having you along in 2026. So far our planes include Scotland and Bali… worlds apart, so to speak.
Wow, you are doing well for your age…. 🙂
On our first trip to the Virgin Islands in the 70s, I took so many photos of brown pelicans [with a film camera no less] that for many years we referred to anything done in excess as “pelican pictures.” Then in 2014, we went to Antarctica and saw penguins. 😁
Laughing, Ray. I totally get it. Mine would have to be deer, but only because we had a heard that lived on our property and were always looking in our windows. Could never resist taking a photo of that.
Great images! Pelicans are so fun. You should submit some of these to the comedy wildlife photos contest. I was actually just looking at the 2025 ones yesterday, and they’re always amusing.
First time I have even heard of them, Diana. I looked them up. Some fun! Thanks. –Curt
The gorilla was great, as were several others. I almost spit out my coffee when I saw the lion cub that thought his dad’s danglies were toys to attack. I watched a fawn outside our home in Oregon once mistake a buck’s appendages for his mom’s source of milk. I swear the buck jumped five feet into the air.
That’s hilarious!
Not sure the buck thought so. Laughing.
We have both species here, although the white pelicans are with us only in winter. There are some local pilings at the edge of the bay where some always line up; it’s a real treat to watch them migrate in, wheeling in groups high in the sky. The brown are with us all year, although we have some migrants as well. We see both juvenile and adult brown ones. They often fish in some of the marinas where I work, but never in groups. There might be two or three, but that’s about the limit, probably because of the narrow spaces they have to dive into. They are great fun to watch, though!
You live in an excellent place to watch sea life, Linda. And your job enhances it. I’d be tempted to watch more than work!
That’s one reason I never take my camera to work. I’d be utterly distracted, all the time. The other reason, of course, is that the chances of my dropping it into the water aren’t zero!
Don’t think I could resist the temptation, Linda. I always worry a bit when I have my camera along when kayaking, or on any boat. But it doesn’t stop me. Just too many good photo ops out there. And, I’ve discovered, the wildlife doesn’t seem nearly as skittish.
Of course, you probably could afford to replace your camera. I couldn’t!
They are huge birds, Curt! All amazing photos, and they sure are intriguing and fascinating! And their pouches can hold two gallons of water? Wow! I think of how heavy water is while carrying it on backpacking trips. :)Thanks for all the facts and fun!