Student Parent Handbook

Pelicans do not store food in their pouch. The pouch does assist in capturing their food, similar to a fishing net. The pelican then tilts to let all the water out and then will swallow the food. A pelican's pouch can hold almost 3 gallons of water!

Speaking of food....pelicans don't eat just fish.  The also eat shellfish, amphibians, turtles and even other birds! But they do eat mostly fish. 

Brown pelicans and Peruvian pelicans plunge dive for food - meaning, they can spot food in the ocean while flying above. Even from 60 feet away! They do so at a high rate of speed from very high (several stories) in the air.  Their bodies have adapted to protect them from injury when the hit the water at those high rates of speed. 

Pelicans breathe through their mouths. They do have nasal openings, but the nostrils are sealed, preventing water from getting in. The nostrils DO serve a purpose though - they have special glands that help to remove some of the salt the birds ingest, which helps them survive all the salt they take in. 

Pelicans feet have webbing in between all four toes. Most birds with webbed feet only have webbing between 3 toes. 

Pelicans sometimes hunt in groups. Several birds will gather in the water and form a U shape. Then they will flap their wings to tightly corral the fish into a small area, making feeding easier for the hunting party.

Pelicans have been around for at least 30 million years! The earliest record of pelican fossils is a skull from France 30 million years ago. They may very well have been here longer than that though.