A wonderous bird is the pelican
His bill holds more than his belican
He can take in his beak
Enough food for a week
But I'm darned if I know how the helican!
Dixon L. Merritt 1910
While sitting enjoying lunch with J we watched some pelicans trying very hard to convince the tourists to feed them. They poked their heads into car windows, turned in circles and tried every trick in the book to get a free feed.
I have always loved their awkward waddle from one webbed foot to the other but their bills are surely what most people remember about them. I have often wondered if their bill could hold more than their belly could and when I asked a ranger this he informed me that a pelican can hold approximately 10 kg of food and fluid and it's stomach can hold approximately 6.5 kgs, thats a lot to lose along the way down.
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