{"id":3523,"date":"2021-08-30T17:35:29","date_gmt":"2021-08-30T17:35:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/?page_id=3523"},"modified":"2021-08-30T17:45:49","modified_gmt":"2021-08-30T17:45:49","slug":"american-white-pelican","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/?page_id=3523","title":{"rendered":"American White Pelican"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Identification <\/a>|\u00a0<\/span>Biology\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0<\/span>Damage ID\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0<\/span>Management\u00a0<\/a>| Resources<\/span>\"\"<\/h1>\n<\/header>\n
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Figure 1.\u00a0American white pelican (Pelecanus\u00a0erythrorhynchos).\u00a0<\/strong>Photo by Mike Baird.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Legal Status<\/h2>\n

In the\u00a0US\u00a0and Canada,\u00a0American\u00a0white\u00a0pelicans are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act\u00a0(MBTA).\u00a0The MBTA\u00a0makes it illegal for anyone to take, possess, import, export, transport, sell, purchase, barter, or offer for sale, purchase, or barter, any migratory bird, or the parts, nests, or eggs of such a bird except under the terms of a valid permit issued pursuant to\u00a0federal regulations.<\/p>\n

As authorized by the\u00a0MBTA, the US Fish and Wildlife Service\u00a0(USFWS)\u00a0issues permits to qualified applicants for\u00a0the\u00a0take of depredating birds.\u00a0The\u00a0Department of Interior,\u00a0USFWS,\u00a0Division\u00a0of Migratory Bird Management\u00a0develops migratory bird permit policy,\u00a0and the permits themselves are issued by the Regional Bird Permit Offices\u00a0of the USFWS.<\/p>\n

The USDA-APHIS\u00a0Wildlife Services\u00a0(WS)\u00a0recommends\u00a0that managers of aquaculture\u00a0facilities take\u00a0the following\u00a0steps to resolve\u00a0damage\u00a0by\u00a0migratory birds:<\/p>\n

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  1. Contact the appropriate wildlife damage control biologist employed by\u00a0WS\u00a0in your region of the state.\u00a0The state office of the\u00a0WS\u00a0program\u00a0may provide assistance.<\/li>\n
  2. The wildlife damage control biologist will\u00a0evaluate your complaint and,\u00a0if necessary,\u00a0conduct a site inspection to identify the migratory species of concern, estimate the\u00a0number of migratory birds, estimate damage, and document other information.<\/li>\n
  3. The wildlife damage control biologist\u00a0will recommend\u00a0nonlethal bird control techniques.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    If existing hazing devices\u00a0are not effective, wildlife damage control biologists may make recommendations on the damage report for lethal control of the species and the maximum number of birds that may be killed.\u00a0The biologist will\u00a0attach\u00a0the report\u00a0to a completed USFWS Federal Fish and Wildlife License\/Permit Application or Depredation Permit (Form 3-200) and mail\u00a0it\u00a0to the Special Agent in Charge in the appropriate USFWS Regional Office. The client pays\u00a0a fee\u00a0(currently $100) to cover administrative costs.\u00a0The\u00a0wildlife damage control\u00a0biologist\u00a0will provide details, including the appropriate addresses.<\/p>\n

    A self-imposed turnaround time for the issuance or rejection of depredation (kill) permits by the USFWS is\u00a0approximately\u00a0one\u00a0week, providing the permit application is complete and no unusual legal or environmental issues\u00a0are\u00a0involved.<\/p>\n

    All recommendations include\u00a0becoming familiar\u00a0with federal and state laws related to bird\u00a0depredation, knowledge of bird identification, and good communication with involved agencies. Actions that may be taken against a depredating bird species to protect a crop may vary from state to state and region to region. In recent years, as\u00a0the number\u00a0of aquaculture-related bird depredation\u00a0complaints\u00a0have\u00a0risen, USFWS\u00a0has\u00a0increased legal action against\u00a0individuals\u00a0violating the MBTA.\u00a0Due to\u00a0the severe legal consequences\u00a0of violating\u00a0the MBTA,\u00a0individuals\u00a0should be aware\u00a0of all these factors and\u00a0follow\u00a0the proper permit process before taking action against depredating species.<\/p>\n

    Physical Description<\/h2>\n

    American\u00a0white\u00a0pelicans are mostly white with black primary\u00a0and secondary feathers\u00a0(Figure\u00a01). Their\u00a0bills\u00a0and legs vary in color with age. Young pelicans have pale, gray-pink bills and legs while adults have yellow to orange-red bills and legs. During the breeding season, adult pelicans develop a horny knob on the\u00a0culmen\u00a0(bill) and pale yellowish feathers on the chest and upper wing.\u00a0When sleeping\u00a0or standing (loafing),\u00a0pelicans\u00a0appear to have squat bodies with long necks.\u00a0The\u00a0American\u00a0white\u00a0pelican has\u00a0a large\u00a0gular\u00a0(throat)\u00a0pouch\u00a0to\u00a0capture\u00a0and manipulate\u00a0prey, a long bill with sharp edges and a small hook (or nail) at the tip.\u00a0It\u00a0also has\u00a0webbed feet and\u00a0is a\u00a0strong swimmer.\u00a0American\u00a0white\u00a0pelicans have the widest wing span of any bird in North America (96\u00a0to\u00a0114\u00a0inches). In flight,\u00a0pelicans appear\u00a0graceful and soaring.\u00a0Males are typically heavier than females,\u00a0averaging 14.3 and 11.2\u00a0pounds,\u00a0respectively. The weight range for males is\u00a011\u00a0to\u00a018\u00a0pounds, and for\u00a0females,\u00a09.3\u00a0to\u00a013.7\u00a0pounds.<\/p>\n

    Species Range<\/h2>\n

    The continental divide\u00a0separates\u00a0American\u00a0white\u00a0pelicans\u00a0into two geographically distinct populations.\u00a0The eastern population\u00a0migrates primarily through the Great Plains and along the Mississippi River and winters in the lower Mississippi River Valley and along the Gulf Coast.\u00a0The western population migrates\u00a0along the Pacific coast\u00a0and winters along the\u00a0coast of\u00a0southern California\u00a0and western Mexico.<\/p>\n

    The breeding range of the American\u00a0white\u00a0pelican extends from south-central British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba,\u00a0and\u00a0southwestern Ontario southward to\u00a0WI,\u00a0MN, ND, SD, MT, WY, CO, UT, NV, CA and\u00a0OR.\u00a0One viable American white pelican colony of approximately 400 exists near Corpus Christi, Texas in the Laguna Madre.<\/p>\n

    Voices and Sounds<\/h2>\n

    Adults are silent except for low, short grunts typically given in agonistic or sexual contexts at a breeding colony.\u00a0Young pelicans (prior to\u00a0fledging\u00a0and at the colony) are more vocal with loud squawks and food-begging calls.\u00a0Non-vocal sounds include\u00a0wings\u00a0splashing water during bathing and when herding prey,\u00a0and popping of the bill during agonistic encounters.<\/p>\n

    Tracks and Signs<\/h2>\n

    Pelicans have large webbed feet,\u00a06\u00bd to 7\u00bd inches\u00a0long and 4\u00bc to 5\u215c inches\u00a0wide\u00a0that\u00a0trample vegetation down to the soil in heavily trafficked areas. Loafing sites\u00a0have\u00a0large quantities of white-colored excrement\u00a0and large feathers.\u00a0The size of a loafing site depends on the number of birds using the area (e.g., more birds = larger area).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Identification |\u00a0Biology\u00a0|\u00a0Damage ID\u00a0|\u00a0Management\u00a0| Resources Figure 1.\u00a0American white pelican (Pelecanus\u00a0erythrorhynchos).\u00a0Photo by Mike Baird. Legal Status In the\u00a0US\u00a0and Canada,\u00a0American\u00a0white\u00a0pelicans are protected by … Continue reading American White Pelican<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":22,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3523","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3523"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3523"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3528,"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3523\/revisions\/3528"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/22"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nwco.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}