Pink-backed Pelican
Pelecanus rufescens
Small by pelican standards, though still a very large bird! Adult is mostly pale gray with a pinkish bill and (in breeding plumage) a gray crest. Immature darker gray. Found in many wetland habitats with open water, including lakes, ponds, and coastal lagoons. Usually in small groups. Often confused with Great White Pelican, but Pink-backed is much smaller. In flight, the outer wing is dark gray rather than black, and it contrasts much less with the pale portions of the wing.
Identification
It is a relatively small pelican, although by no means is it a small bird. Its length is from 125 to 155 cm (49 to 61 in), wingspan is 2.15–2.9 m (7.1–9.5 ft) and body mass is from 4 to 7 kg (8.8 to 15.4 lb). The bill is 30 to 38 cm (12 to 15 in) in length. The plumage is grey and white, with a pinkish hue on the back occasionally apparent (never in the deep pink of a flamingo). The top of the bill is yellow and the pouch is usually greyish. Breeding adults have long feather plumes on the head.<p>It shares its habitat with the great white pelican, which is generally larger and has white instead of greyish plumage.
Taxonomy
The pink-backed pelican was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the other pelicans in the genus Pelecanus and coined the binomial name Pelecanus rufescens. Gmelin based his description on the "red-backed pelican" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work A General Synopsis of Birds . Latham had been sent a specimen from West Africa. The specific epithet rufescens is Latin for "reddish". The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
- Scientific name
- Pelecanus rufescens
- Authority
- Gmelin, JF, 1789
- Order
- Pelecaniformes
- Family
- Pelecanidae
- Genus
- Pelecanus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
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