Brown pelicans
Images copyright by Mark A. Chappell
Many of the California brown pelicans shown here are in non-breeding plumage, but as the early winter breeding season approaches, the adults change from their conservative gray-and-white summer-fall coloration to a much brighter appearance, with a red flush to the throat pouch and a rich brownish hindneck contrasting with the yellowish head plumes. Young birds are browinsh overall. These photos were all taken at Bolsa Chica wetlands in coastal Orange County, California, and in La Jolla, CA. Other pelican pictures: fishing birds here; close-up portraits here; swimming pictures here.
