Brown pelicans fishing
Image copyright by Mark A. Chappell
These brown pelicans are in various stages of the progression from dull winter plumage to the bright breeding coloration. All of these birds are fishing, which they do with ther bucketlike throat pouch (close-up portraits here; flight pictures here; swimming pictures here). All are adult birds, photographed at Bolsa Chica wetlands in coastal Orange County, California.
