Brown Pelican, National Aviary (Pittsburgh, PA)

Pelicans are large, bulky waterbirds with webbed feet, short legs, and a remarkably long bill. The underside of their bills extends into a pouch that can hold 2-3 gallons of water at a time, used to trap fish. When hunting, they spot their prey from the air and plunge into the water head-first. After trapping the fish, they drain the water out the sides of the bill, and then swallow the fish whole. Brown pelicans incubate their eggs with their feet, essentially standing on them to keep them warm. Unfortunately, the use of the pesticide DDT caused brown pelican numbers to plummet during the 20th century. Much like the decline of the bald eagle, DDT thinned the pelicans’ egg shells, causing them to break during incubation. After DDT use was banned, brown pelican numbers slowly recovered and they were officially removed from the federal endangered species list in 1985. The National Aviary is home to two brown pelicans, Ralph and Dexter. They were both injured in the wild and are unable to be released. The Brown Pelican is one of only three pelican species found in the Western Hemisphere, and one of only two pelican species which feed by diving directly down into the water.
[Source: www.aviary.org/animals/brown-pelican]

The brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is a North American bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae. It is one of three pelican species found in the Americas and one of only two that feeds by diving in water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from Nova Scotia to the mouth of the Amazon River, and along the Pacific Coast from British Columbia to northern Chile, including the Galapagos Islands. The nominate subspecies in its breeding plumage has a white head with a yellowish wash on the crown. The nape and neck are dark maroon–brown. The upper sides of the neck have white lines along the base of the gular pouch, and the lower foreneck has a pale yellowish patch. The male and female are similar, but the female is slightly smaller. The non-breeding adult has a white head and neck. The pink skin around the eyes becomes dull and gray in the non-breeding season. It lacks any red hue, and the pouch is strongly olivaceous ochre tinged and the legs are olivaceous gray to blackish-gray. The brown pelican mainly feeds on fish, but occasionally eats amphibians, crustaceans, and the eggs and nestlings of birds. It nests in colonies in secluded areas, often on islands, vegetated land among sand dunes, thickets of shrubs and trees, and mangroves. Females lay two to three oval, chalky white eggs. Incubation takes 28 to 30 days with both sexes sharing duties. The newly hatched chicks are pink, turning gray or black within 4 to 14 days. It takes about 63 days for chicks to fledge. Six to nine weeks after hatching, the juveniles leave the nest, and gather into small groups known as pods. The brown pelican is the national bird of Saint Martin, Barbados, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the official state bird of Louisiana. In 1902, it was made a part of the official Louisiana seal and, in 1912, a pelican and her young became part of the Flag of Louisiana as well. It has been rated as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. It was listed under the United States Endangered Species Act from 1970 to 2009, as pesticides like dieldrin and DDT threatened its future in the southeastern United States and California. In 1972, the use of DDT was banned in Florida, followed by the rest of the United States. Since then, the brown pelican's population has increased. In 1903, Theodore Roosevelt set aside the first National Wildlife Refuge, Florida's Pelican Island, in order to protect the species from hunters.
[Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_pelican]

The National Aviary, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the only independent indoor nonprofit aviary in the United States. It is also the country's largest aviary, and the only accorded honorary "National" status by the United States Congress. The aviary is home to over 500 birds representing more than 150 species, and is a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
[Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Aviary]

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Taken in: United States / Pennsylvania / Pittsburgh / Allegheny West (show map)

Taken on: November 22, 2017

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Camera: Nikon D800, f/5.6, 1/400 sec, 170mm, ISO 3200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D800
Lens:	28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6
Aperture:	f/5.6
Exposure Time:	0.003 sec (1/400)
Focal Length:	170mm
ISO:	3200
Exposure Bias:	-1 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Manual
Light Source:	Daylight
Gain Control:	High gain up
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CC (Windows)
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