Australian Pelican
Encyclopedia
The Australian Pelican is a large water bird
, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia
and New Guinea
, also in Fiji
, parts of Indonesia
and as a vagrant to New Zealand
.
in 1824. Its specific epithet is derived from the Latin
verb conspicere "to perceive", hence "conspicuous".
standards: 1.6 to 1.88 m (5.2 to 6.2 ft) long with a wingspan of 2.3 to 2.6 m (7.5 to 8.5 ft). Weight can range from 4 to 13 kg (8.8 to 28.7 lb), although most of these pelicans weigh between 4.54 and 7.7 kg (10 and 17 lb). It is predominantly white with black along the primaries of the wings. The pale, pinkish bill is enormous, even by pelican standards, and is the largest bill in the avian world. The record-sized bill was 50 cm (19.7 in) long.
Pelicans work in groups to drive fish to shallower water, where they stick their sensitive bills in to snatch their prey.
, grassland
, desert
, estuarine
mudflats, an ornamental city park, or industrial wasteland, provided only that there is open water able to support a sufficient supply of fish
.
Australian Pelicans follow no particular schedule of regular movement, simply following the availability of food supplies. When the normally barren Lake Eyre
filled during 1974 to 1976, for example, only a handful of pelicans remained around the coastal cities: when the great inland lakes dried again, the population dispersed once more, flocks of thousands being seen on the northern coasts and some individuals reaching Christmas Island
, Palau
and New Zealand.
The species became first known to occur in New Zealand from a specimen shot at Jerusalem
in 1890 and small numbers of subfossil
bones, the first found at Lake Grassmere
in 1947, followed by records of other stray individuals. The bones were later described as a new (sub)species, Pelecanus (conspicillatus) novaezealandiae (Scarlett, 1966: "New Zealand Pelican") as they appeared to be larger, but Worthy (1998), reviewing new material, determined that they were not separable from the Australian population. These fossils were first found in 1930.
in South Australia. Nesting is communal, with colonies located on islands (such as the North Peron Island
) or sheltered areas in the vicinity of lakes or the sea. Breeding Australian pelicans will lay one or three chalky-white eggs measuring 93 x 57 mm, which are often scratched and dirty. After they hatch, the larger one will be fed more, and the smaller one will eventually die of starvation
or siblicide
. For the first two weeks the chicks will be fed regurgitated liquid, but for the remaining two months they will be fed fish such as goldfish
or the introduced European carp, and some invertebrate
s.-Not
Widespread throughout its large range, the Australian Pelican is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, also in Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, parts of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and as a vagrant to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Taxonomy
The Australian Pelican was first described by Dutch naturalist Coenraad Jacob TemminckCoenraad Jacob Temminck
Coenraad Jacob Temminck was a Dutch aristocrat and zoologist.Temminck was the first director of the National Natural History Museum at Leiden from 1820 until his death. His Manuel d'ornithologie, ou Tableau systematique des oiseaux qui se trouvent en Europe was the standard work on European birds...
in 1824. Its specific epithet is derived from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
verb conspicere "to perceive", hence "conspicuous".
Description
The Australian Pelican is medium-sized by pelicanPelican
A pelican, derived from the Greek word πελεκυς pelekys is a large water bird with a large throat pouch, belonging to the bird family Pelecanidae....
standards: 1.6 to 1.88 m (5.2 to 6.2 ft) long with a wingspan of 2.3 to 2.6 m (7.5 to 8.5 ft). Weight can range from 4 to 13 kg (8.8 to 28.7 lb), although most of these pelicans weigh between 4.54 and 7.7 kg (10 and 17 lb). It is predominantly white with black along the primaries of the wings. The pale, pinkish bill is enormous, even by pelican standards, and is the largest bill in the avian world. The record-sized bill was 50 cm (19.7 in) long.
Pelicans work in groups to drive fish to shallower water, where they stick their sensitive bills in to snatch their prey.
Distribution and habitat
Australian Pelicans prefer large expanses of open water without too much aquatic vegetation. The surrounding environment is unimportant: it can be forestForest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
, grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
, estuarine
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
mudflats, an ornamental city park, or industrial wasteland, provided only that there is open water able to support a sufficient supply of fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
.
Australian Pelicans follow no particular schedule of regular movement, simply following the availability of food supplies. When the normally barren Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre is the lowest point in Australia, at approximately below sea level, and, on the rare occasions that it fills, it is the largest lake in Australia and 18th largest in the world...
filled during 1974 to 1976, for example, only a handful of pelicans remained around the coastal cities: when the great inland lakes dried again, the population dispersed once more, flocks of thousands being seen on the northern coasts and some individuals reaching Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
, Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
and New Zealand.
The species became first known to occur in New Zealand from a specimen shot at Jerusalem
Jerusalem, New Zealand
Jerusalem was once an important kainga on the Whanganui River in New Zealand where a Roman Catholic mission was first established in 1854....
in 1890 and small numbers of subfossil
Subfossil
Subfossil refers to remains whose fossilization process is not complete, either for lack of time or because the conditions in which they were buried were not optimal for fossilization....
bones, the first found at Lake Grassmere
Lake Grassmere
Lake Grassmere is close to Cook Strait in the northeastern South Island of New Zealand.- Geography :Lake Grassmere, south of Blenheim and south of the mouth of the Awatere River, is a shallow lagoon protected from the open sea by a single barrier beach covered by sand dunes...
in 1947, followed by records of other stray individuals. The bones were later described as a new (sub)species, Pelecanus (conspicillatus) novaezealandiae (Scarlett, 1966: "New Zealand Pelican") as they appeared to be larger, but Worthy (1998), reviewing new material, determined that they were not separable from the Australian population. These fossils were first found in 1930.
Breeding
The Australian Pelican begins breeding at two or three years of age. Breeding season varies, occurring in winter in tropical areas (north of 26oS) and late spring in parts of southern Australia. Any time after rainfall is usual in inland areas. The nest is a shallow depression in earth or sand, sometimes with some grass lining. Grassy platforms are constructed at Lake AlexandrinaLake Alexandrina (South Australia)
Lake Alexandrina is a lake in South Australia adjacent to the coast of the Southern Ocean, about 100 kilometres south-east of Adelaide.-Name:The lake was named after Princess Alexandrina, niece and successor of King William IV of Great Britain and Ireland...
in South Australia. Nesting is communal, with colonies located on islands (such as the North Peron Island
Peron Islands
The Peron Islands are two low laying islands off the west coast of the Northern Territory of Australia. They are situated approximately 5 kilometres off Channel Point. Channel Point forms the northern end of Anson Bay which includes the mouth of the Daly River.The smaller South Peron Island lies...
) or sheltered areas in the vicinity of lakes or the sea. Breeding Australian pelicans will lay one or three chalky-white eggs measuring 93 x 57 mm, which are often scratched and dirty. After they hatch, the larger one will be fed more, and the smaller one will eventually die of starvation
Starvation
Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy, nutrient and vitamin intake. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage and eventually, death...
or siblicide
Siblicide
Siblicide is the killing of an infant individual by its close relatives . It may occur directly between siblings or be mediated by the parents. The evolutionary drivers may be either indirect benefits for the genetic viability of a population or direct benefits for the perpetrators...
. For the first two weeks the chicks will be fed regurgitated liquid, but for the remaining two months they will be fed fish such as goldfish
Goldfish
The goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish....
or the introduced European carp, and some invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
s.-Not
Widespread throughout its large range, the Australian Pelican is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
External links
- Pelican videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- BirdLife Species Factsheet
- IUCN Red List
- Australian Museum fact sheet
- GouldJohn GouldJohn Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection...
's The Birds of Australia plate - Australian Pelicans at Victor Harbor, South Australia