Pelicans are closer than you might think

Save yourself a trip. You need not endure the hassle of a days-long road trip. The Texas Gulf Coast is not a mere hop, skip and jump from your home.

Instead, take the short journey to any of the large drinking water reservoirs in (or near) our municipality. You’re going in search of freshwater pelicans, not the saltwater variety. October is an excellent time in which to go in search of white pelicans.

Once you find some, take note of their wings. Black feathers are prominent on the wing tips. White pelicans travel long distances and that extra color component adds greatly to retard feather wear and tear.

Also, pay attention to these birds in flight. It is truly amazing that they seem to spend so little effort to remain aloft. Despite the image that they seem to be a flying sack of potatoes, these birds are actually more akin to the heft of an airy bed pillow.

In conclusion, let me leave you with poet Ogden Nash’s soliloquy to this truly remarkable bird: “A wonderful bird is the pelican; His bill can hold more than his belican.”

THE OKLAHOMAN FILE White pelicans line the Oklahoma River in Oklahoma City. October is a good time to spot white pelicans at Lake Hefner, Lake Overholser and other nearby bodies of water.