White pelicans a sight to behold
Large birds take turns herding baitfish around lake
Without question one of the more popular birds on Clear Lake is the American White Pelican. Hundreds of pelicans spend the winter months on Clear Lake and bird watchers love to see them in their long lines of flight. The population varies from a few dozen in the summer to more than a thousand during the winter.
Weighing up to 20 pounds and with a 9 ½-foot wingspan, white pelicans are one of the largest birds in North America. In spite of their huge size, they sit high on the water because their bones are full of air and they have large air sacs in their body. Because of this they cannot dive underwater. Their primary diet consists of fish and crustaceans. An adult pelican consumes up to five pounds of fish per day.
Pelicans are not known to nest at Clear Lake but they do spend their winters here. They migrate to the lake because of its abundant food supply. The nearest nesting areas are the lakes near the Oregon border and the Salton Sea. Normally a pelican only lay two eggs, of which only one normally survives to adulthood. The young are hatched with no feathers and they only have a coating of down.
Pelicans have a yellowish pouch connected to the bottom of their bill that stretches up to six inches. One theory is that pelicans store food in the giant bills, but scientists say that isn’t the case. Their bodies are solid white with black wingtips. During the mating season the male develops a large growth on the upper part of his beak. The bill is also bright orange during the mating season. Their feet are orange and are webbed. Their legs
are extremely short, making it hard time for a pelican to walk on land. They can live up to 16 years and the oldest recorded white pelican was 34 years old.
Unlike other species of pelicans that dive for their food from great heights, the white pelican scoops small fish up into its pouch while swimming. The pelican dips its beak, which allows the water to drain out of the pouch. The pouch can hold up to three gallons of water. It then tips its bill upward and swallows the fish. Pelicans have been observed swallowing adult bass and carp.
How they actually catch their fish is what makes the birds so fascinating. A flock of a dozen or more pelicans will surround a school of baitfish and, by flapping their wings on the surface, herd the fish into shallow water where the birds scoop them up. The birds work together to obtain food. One group herds the fish and the other group scoops them up. After a short time they trade places.
It takes approximately four pounds of fish a day to feed a single pelican. What is strange is that I have never observed pelicans at surrounding lakes such as Mendocino, Pillsbury or Indian Valley, perhaps because they are deep lakes and the pelicans can’t locate the minnows there. Scientists believe Clear Lake, a shallow lake, is a popular wintering area for the pelicans because it has such a large population of minnows.
The flight of the pelican is a sight to behold. The bird’s large wing surface area allows it to make a few flaps and then glide for several hundred yards. When in a flock they usually fly in single file or in a v-formation. Their flight is often described as “follow the leader” because if the lead bird makes a dip all the other birds make the same dip. When pelicans travel across country they use their giant wings to capture the air currents. Pelicans can be observed in just about every location around Clear Lake. There is a large flock near the sand bar just outside Clear Lake State Park. Another flock stays in the open water between Library Park and Konocti Vista Casino in Lakeport. Pelicans can also be seen along Highway 20 between Nice and Clearlake Oaks.