Brown Pelican

Description:

Brown Pelicans are huge, stocky seabirds. They have thin necks and very long bills with a stretchy throat pouch used for capturing fish. Their wings are very long and broad and are often noticeably bowed when the birds are gliding. Adult Brown Pelicans are gray-brown birds with yellow heads and white necks. In breeding plumage, the back and sides of the neck turn a rich, dark reddish-brown. Immatures are gray-brown above (including the head and neck) with pale whitish belly and breast.

Habitat:

At an opening on the Martyn Trail there is a view of a narrow part of the Armand bayou. This pelican was fishing, then took off for another dive.

Notes:

Upper Texas Coast (UTC 081) ARMAND BAYOU NATURE CENTER: A system of nature trails honeycombs the property, and the center operates a pontoon boat that plies the waters of Armand Bayou. ABNC staff and volunteers have spent countless hours restoring several hundred acres of coastal prairie, and grassland species such as Sedge Wren and Le Conte’s Sparrow are not difficult to find here. ABNC staff is available to answer questions about when and where to bird in the Clear Lake area.