Birdsong field guide
Great White Pelican
Pelecanus onocrotalus
A massive, gregarious waterbird distinguished by its immense pink-and-yellow gular pouch and snowy white plumage. It is among the heaviest flying birds and is renowned for its synchronized cooperative fishing behavior.
What it sounds like
Generally silent when foraging or in flight, but emits deep, guttural croaks, grunts, and bellows at nesting colonies.
Field notes
- Boasts one of the largest wingspans of any living bird, measuring up to 3.6 meters (nearly 12 feet).
- They are highly efficient cooperative hunters, forming semicircles to drive fish into shallow water for easier capture.
- During the breeding season, the facial skin turns a vivid pink or orange and adults develop a small crest and a yellowish patch on the breast.
- The elastic gular pouch can hold up to 13 liters of water, acting as a dip net rather than a permanent storage container.
- Palearctic populations are long-distance migrants, capable of flying hundreds of kilometers daily to reach wintering grounds in Africa and Asia.
Habitat
Large, shallow freshwater lakes, marshes, river deltas, and alkaline inland seas.
Range
Southeastern Europe, Central Asia, and throughout much of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Similar & commonly confused birds
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