Animal Behavior:  Brown pelicans are seasonally monogamous and nest in irregular patterns.  The number of eggs laid ranges from 1 to 4. Adult brown pelicans lay 3 eggs per season on average, while juvenile pelicans less than 3 years old lay no more than 2 eggs. Brown pelicans have a long lifespan. The oldest individual recorded in the wild was 43 years of age. 

Native Habitat:  North America

Eating Habits:  Brown pelicans are carnivores, primarily feeding on fish but also small marine invertebrates. They are the only pelicans that dive for their food. Their astounding eyesight while in flight allows them to dive from up to 20 meters in the air.

Range:  Brown pelicans are found in warm, shallow waters throughout the nearctic and neotropical regions of both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Although considered strictly coastal, there are some records of brown pelicans living inland during the post-breeding season.  

Conservation Efforts:  The IUCN Red List classifies brown pelicans as a species of least concern and the US Federal list gives them no special status.  In the 1950s and 1960s, DDT was used as a pesticide and subsequently was passed through the food chain up to brown pelicans.  Brown pelicans were listed as endangered in 1970 but DDT was not outlawed until 1972. In 1985, brown pelicans were downgraded to threatened and in 2009 the species was removed from the list completely.

Animal Facts:  Brown pelicans communicate through visual cues, chemical signals, acoustically, and in a tactile manner.  Brown pelicans are the only species in the pelican family that dive from the air as their primary means of obtaining food. They have air sacs which allow them to be very buoyant in the water. They never swim below the surface but will plunge their head below it in an attempt to catch prey.