More About Pelicans

Pelicans are very recognizable birds, especially because of the pouches on their throats. Did you know that pelicans use their throat pouches to catch fish and to carry materials for building their nests? Here are ten more facts that might surprise you:

1. All kinds of pelicans have a throat pouch. Their pouches can hold more than their stomachs.
2. Pelicans can have a wingspan up to nine feet wide. They can have a hard time getting into the air because of their size, but with the right gust of wind they can fly high into the sky.
3. Pelicans are very quiet when they’re away from their breeding colony or when it’s not time for food.
4. Pelicans live on most of the continents in the world. The only continent pelicans don’t live on is Antarctica.
5. There are eight different species of pelican. The pelican with the largest bill size is the Australian pelican, which can have a bill as long as one and a half feet!
6. Pelicans are one of the few bird types that breathe through their mouths instead of their nostrils.
7. In the wild, pelicans can live up to 25 years. In captivity, they can live more than 50 years.
8. Pelicans mostly eat fish, and they can eat as much as four pounds of fish a day. Brown pelicans dive under the water to catch fish, while other pelicans keep their heads above water.
9. A pelican can’t swallow fish until it drains the water it scooped up out of its pouch. A pelican’s throat pouch can hold three gallons of water.
10. Pelican feathers are waterproof, but only when tiny parts of each feather called barbs lock together. Pelicans and other birds are in danger during an oil spill, as the oil separates the barbs and exposes the birds to the cold.