American White Pelican

Description:

American White Pelicans weigh about 16.4 pounds (7,500 grams), and measure over five feet in length, with a huge 9-foot wingspan. Sexes look similar, with short legs and tail; long, broad white wings with black tips and trailing edges; a large, heavy all-white body; and a huge pinkish to pale-orange bill and throat pouch. In breeding condition, they have a distinctive knob protruding upward from the upper mandible. Webbed feet make these pelicans strong swimmers.

Habitat:

John Bunker Sands Wetland Center. Its mission is to both educate the public and provide research opportunities in the areas of water quality and supply, wildlife management, and wetland systems. The constructed wetlands include seasonal emergent wetlands, scrub swamps and flooded bottomland hardwood forest.