While visiting Point Reyes National Seashore in California, I saw these fine birds in the wild for the first time. The American White Pelican rivals the Trumpeter Swan, as one of the longest birds native to North America.

This bird is very large and plump, with an overall length of about 50–70 inches, courtesy of the huge beak which measures over one foot long. It has a wingspan of over 100 inches. One of our largest flying birds, it is considerably larger than a Bald Eagle. This species also has the second-largest average wingspan of any North American bird, after the California Condor.

Unlike the Brown Pelican, the American White Pelican does not dive for its food. Instead, it catches its prey while swimming. Each bird eats more than four pounds of food a day. The fish taken can range from the size of minnows to 3-1/2 pound Pickerel. They like to gather in groups of a dozen or more to feed, as they can thus cooperate and corral fish for one another.

These birds are colonial breeders, with up to 10,000 pairs per site. They arrive on the breeding grounds in March or April; nesting starts between early April and early June. During the breeding season, both males and females develop a pronounced bump on the top of their large beaks. This conspicuous growth is shed by the end of the breeding season.

The nest is a shallow depression scraped in the ground, into which some twigs, sticks, reeds, or similar debris have been gathered. After about one week of courtship and nest-building, the female lays a clutch of usually two or three eggs – sometimes just one, sometimes up to six.

American White Pelicans nest on inland islands in freshwater and brackish lakes across the northern interior of North America. The core breeding areas include central Alberta and Saskatchewan in Canada, south through Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and west-central Wisconsin. In my home state of Ohio, observers discovered and documented them nesting on a small island in Sandusky Bay last year.

Third Eye Herp
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