American White Pelicans In Mid-Summer
A special treat for birding enthusiasts living in or visiting the Wacouta area is the opportunity to observe one of Minnesota's largest birds ...The American White Pelican.
If the river level is anywhere near normal, these pelicans with a 9 foot wing-span can be observed feeding, resting in the backwaters or circling in unison high overhead.
Pelicans Resting At The Head Of Lake Pepin
Given the fact there are no pelican rookeries in our area, the birds we see in the summer are sub-adults. It isn't until the fall migration starts that we begin to observe the adults. The population builds until the end of October when most pelicans decide to migrate to warmer climates.
That was until the fall of 2024 with it's record setting temperatures in September through November. It wasn't until December 4th, 2024 local pelicans received the memo to get out of "Dodge."
In visiting with Ranger Katie Julian of the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife Refuge, I learned the tundra swan migration this fall was at least three weeks later than normal as well.
I can still remember my first sighting of pelicans in the Red Wing area. An after school kayak outing with students from the Environmental Learning Center in September of the early 1990's from Bay Point park to Colvill Park through the Wisconsin backwaters revealed this amazing discovery.
A Pod Of Pelicans Trying To Stay Warm
Early in the morning of December 4th, I stopped by Colvill Park to check on the bald eagle population. What I discovered instead was a pod of nearly 40 pelicans huddled together in an attempt to stay warm. Two adults were standing guard as sentinels
Two Sentinel Pelicans
Up until December 4th, these pelicans were leading the "High Life" feasting on the huge abundance of gizzard shad living in the warm water discharge of the nearby power plant. Gizzard shad are attracted from the cold water of the river into the warmer discharge water.
Pelicans Becoming More Active
A couple hours later as the sunshine warmed up the area, the birds became more active and returned to their feeding routine.
Female Common Merganser
Pelicans were not the only bird life taking advantage of the bounty of shad for the taking. At least 60 migrating common mergansers were at the scene.
Successful Common Merganser
With a couple photos, I was lucky enough to capture a successful catch by a merganser. It is easier said than done because the fish is usually swallowed by the time they surface.
Successful Mallard
Even a local mallard (sometimes referred to as a popcorn duck) was successful getting in on the action.
Pelican's Large Bill
While the brown pelican found along the gulf coast catches fish by diving into the water, the white pelican employs a totally different strategy. White pelicans swim as a group into shallow water dipping their large pouched bills into the water to scoop up fish and water. Finally, they raise their bills to drain the water and swallow the fish.
Awesome photos, Bruce!!