Distribution

Breeding Range

Figure 1 . Pacific coast from s. California south to central Mexico (including Gulf of California), Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Galápagos Is. (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998), and s. Ecuador (Ridgely and Greenfield 2001). Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts from Maryland south around Florida and west to s. Texas; from s. Veracruz, Mexico, east to n. Honduras (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998, Bermingham et al. 1998); in s. Bahamas, Greater and Lesser Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998), and n. Colombia (Hilty and Brown 1986). Also inland at Lake Okeechobee, FL (Smith and Goguen 1993), and Salton Sea, CA (Sturm 1998). Specific sites tend to be used year after year until changes in nesting habitat, food availability, or human disturbance induce colony relocation (Schreiber and Schreiber 1982, Anderson and Gress 1983).

United States. Breeds in 10 coastal states. Maryland: Spring I. (Dorchester Co.), since 1998; S. Point Spoils (Worchester Co.), 1987 to 1995 only (D. Brinker pers. comm.). Virginia: In Chesapeake Bay on S. Point Marsh (formerly on nearby Cheeseman and Shanks Is. [Accomack Co.]; Iliff 1999c), and on Atlantic coast at Fisherman I. (Northampton Co.; Williams 1989). N. Carolina: small islands inside Oregon and Ocracoke Inlets (Dare and Hyde Cos.), in s. Pamlico Sound (Carteret Co.), and on lower Cape Fear River (New Hanover and Brunswick Cos.; Wilkinson et al. 1994, Parnell et al. 1995). S. Carolina: several islands from Bulls Bay south to mouth of north fork of Edisto River (Charleston Co.; Wilkinson et al. 1994, Wilkinson 1997). Georgia: Egg I. Bar near mouth of Altamaha River (Glynn Co.) and Satilla River Marsh I. (Camden Co.), formerly near tip of St. Catherines I. (Liberty Co.; Ruckdeschel et al. 1990; Georgia Dep. Nat. Resour., Nongame Wildlife and Natural Heritage Section data). Florida: 35–42 scattered sites from Port Orange (Volusia Co.) on Atlantic coast south to Florida Bay and the Lower Keys and north along Gulf coast to St. Andrews Bay (Bay Co.; Nesbitt 1996, Florida Fish Wildlife Conserv. Comm. data), and inland at Clewiston Spit, Lake Okeechobee, in 1991 and 1992 (Smith and Goguen 1993). Alabama: Gaillard I. in Mobile Bay (R. Clay pers. comm.). Louisiana: Chandeleur Is. west locally to Isle Dernieres (McNease et al. 1992, Visser and Peterson 1994). Primary sites during 1990s were North I. (St. Bernard Parish), North Grand Gosier I. (Plaquemines Parish), Queen Bess I. (Jefferson Parish), and Last I. (Terrebonne Parish; Louisiana Nat. Heritage Prog. data). Texas: Galveston Bay south locally to s. Laguna Madre; regular on Little Pelican I. in Galveston Bay (Galveston Co.), Sundown I. in Matagorda Bay (Matagorda Co.), and Pelican I. in Corpus Christi Bay (Nueces Co.; Texas Colonial Waterbird Census data). California: West Anacapa and Santa Barbara Is. in S. California Bight (Gress 1995), and small numbers (<15 pairs) inland at Salton Sea (Sturm 1998, D. Anderson pers. comm.).

Mexico. Offshore islands along Pacific coast of Baja California, with largest colonies on Islas los Coronados, Islas San Benitos, and Isla Santa Margarita (Everett and Anderson 1991), and 15–20 islands in Gulf of California, most in northern and central portions, with largest colonies on Islas Cholluda, San Luis, Angel de la Guarda, Salsipuedes, Las Animas, San Lorenzo, San Pedro Mártir, Tortuga, San Ildefonso, Santa Catalina, Espíritu Santo, and Cerralvo (Everett and Anderson 1991, Velarde and Anderson 1994). Also along coast of Sinaloa (Ensenada del Pabellon) and on Islas Tres Marias and Isla Isabela, Nayarit (U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. 1983, Am. Ornithol. Union 1998). On Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean coasts of Mexico, colonies in states of Veracruz (Roca Partida; Am. Ornithol. Union 1998), Yucatán (site not specified; Howell and Webb 1995), Quintana Roo (Isla Contoy, Isla Morena, Boca Paila, and possibly Bahía de la Ascension), Tabasco (Laguna del Carmen; Blankinship 1987), and formerly Campeche (Laguna de Terminos), but no nesting observed during mid-1980s (Blankinship 1987).

Central America. Pacific coast: In Honduras, on islands in the Bay of Fonseca; in Costa Rica, on Isla Guayabo in Golfo de Nicoya and Isla Bolaños in Bahía Salinas (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998); and in Panama, at the following sites: Isla Barca Quebrada off Isla Coiba; Isla Iguana near Punta Mala; Islas Boná, Taboga, Uravá, Taboguilla, and Chamá in the Bay of Panama; and in the Pearl Is. on Islas Pacheca, Señora, Pedro González, San Telmo, and Galera (Montgomery and Martínez 1984, Ridgely and Gwynne 1989, G. Angehr pers. comm.). Caribbean coast: Man-of-War Cay, Belize (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998) and Isla Cochino Pequeño, Honduras (Bermingham et al. 1998).

West Indies (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998, Collazo et al. 2000). In s. Bahamas, Great Inagua and Caicos Is. In Cuba, Sabana-Camagüey, Canarreos, and Jardines de la Reina archipelagos, Pueblo de los Pajaros, and Cayos de Sevilla (O. Garrido and A. Kirkconnell unpubl.). In Jamaica, St. Elizabeth and Port Royal. In Dominican Republic, formerly on Beata I. and Parque Nacional del Este; current sites unknown. In Puerto Rico, Montalva Bay, Aguadilla, and Conejo Cay. In U.S. Virgin Is., Dutchcap Cay, Congo Cay, Whistling Point, Mary’s Point, and Buck I. In British Virgin Is., Little Tobago, Guana I., and Norman I. In Lesser Antilles, St. Martin, St. Kitts, Barbuda, and Antigua.

South America. Along Caribbean coast of Colombia near Santa Marta (Hilty and Brown 1986); Venezuelan coast from Lake Maracaibo east to Caño Macareo and offshore on Islas Los Roques and Isla de Margarita (Guzman and Schreiber 1987); Bucuti Reef, Aruba (Voous 1983); Saut d’Eau I. and occasionally Caroni Swamp in Trinidad; possibly off Tobago (ffrench 1991). Only known colony on Pacific coast of South America is Isla Santa Clara in Gulf of Guayaquil, Ecuador (Ridgely and Greenfield 2001). In Galápagos Is., breeds on Isabela, Fernandina, Santa Cruz, Baltra, and other central islands (Harris 1973, Valle et al. 1987); has also bred on Marchena and Española (Harris 1973).

Peruvian Pelican (see Systematics: subspecies, below) breeds along Pacific coast from n. Peru to central Chile. Major colonies in n. Peru on Lobos de Tierra and Lobos de Afuera; smaller numbers on Macabi, Mazorca, and other islands along the central coast (Duffy 1994). Breeds in n. and central Chile; known breeding sites include Cachagua, Pájaro Niño, and Mocha Is. (Simeone and Bernal 2000, R. Schlatter pers. comm.). Breeding reported at Isla de Chiloé in s. Chile (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998), but not confirmed (R. Schlatter pers. comm.).

Winter Range

Figure 1 . Present year-round from central California (Briggs et al. 1987) and lower Chesapeake Bay (Iliff 1999a) southward along both coasts of North and Middle America (Ridgely and Gwynne 1989, Stiles and Skutch 1989, Howell and Webb 1995) to s. Ecuador (Hilty and Brown 1986, Ridgely and Greenfield 2001) and Galápagos Is. (Harris 1969), eastward to e. Venezuela (van Halewyn and Norton 1984), and throughout the West Indies (Sprunt 1984, Collazo et al. 2000). Along Atlantic coast of U.S., single records for Jan and Feb for both Delaware (Hess et al. 2000) and New Jersey (Walsh et al. 1999). Some postbreeding migrants from s. California and w. Mexico may remain along Pacific coast from central California north to s. British Columbia through Dec or Jan (Briggs et al. 1983, Shepard 1999b, Tweit et al. 1999). A few Gulf of California migrants occasionally remain through winter in s. Arizona (Stejskal et al. 1994). Often breeds during winter south of 20–30°N latitude (see Breeding: phenology, below). Peruvian Pelican resident throughout breeding range; regular visitor to s. Ecuador during austral winter (Ridgely and Greenfield 2001; see Systematics: subspecies, below).

Other Records

Wanders widely, especially during postbreeding period; regular along Pacific coast north to s. British Columbia and Atlantic coast north to s. New York, casually to New England and Nova Scotia; also regular inland to s. Arizona (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998) and central Florida (McNair 2000). Casual inland elsewhere in North America north to Idaho, Wyoming, N. Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ontario, and s. Quebec (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998); also offshore in Bermuda Is. (Palmer 1962). In Middle America, cas-ual inland in nw. Mexico and Isthmus of Tehuantepec to Guatemala (Howell and Webb 1995); also great lakes of Nicaragua (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998). Casual at Guadalupe I. off Baja California (Am. Ornithol. Union 1957) and Isla del Coco off Costa Rica (Dudzik 1996). In South America, regular in small numbers in Suriname (Haverschmidt 1949), but rare eastward to n. Brazil (Am. Ornithol. Union 1998). Muddy coastal waters between Gulf of Paria and mouth of Amazon River apparently limit eastward movement (Murphy 1936). Along Pacific coast of South America, Peruvian Pelican disperses north (as far as equator in Ecuador: Ridgely and Greenfield 2001), south (regularly to Isla de Chiloé, Chile; Murphy 1936), or short distance inland (within cities of Lima, Peru [Leck 1973] and Arica, Chile [CNN 1997]) in search of food during El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events (Duffy 1983b). Southernmost record of any Brown Pelican is that of a Peruvian Pelican at Tierra del Fuego (reference in Murphy 1936).

Not recorded.

Early in twentieth century, known to breed along Atlantic and Gulf coasts of U.S. only in S. Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. In 1929, small colony discovered in Pamlico Sound near Ocracoke Inlet, NC (Pearson et al. 1942). Breeding range in N. Carolina expanded southward to Cape Fear River in 1978 (Parnell and Soots 1979) and northward to Oregon Inlet in 1983 (Parnell and McCrimmon 1984). Northward expansion continued in 1987, when breeding first recorded along Atlantic coast of Virginia and Maryland (Armistead 1987). Breeding range extended into Virginia portion of Chesapeake Bay in 1992 (Armistead 1992) and into Maryland portion in 1998 (Iliff 1998). During the 1980s, unprecedented numbers appeared in summer in Delaware, New Jersey, and New York (Paxton et al. 1988). In 1992 and 1994, nests built on an island in Barnegat Bay, NJ, but no eggs laid (Burger et al. 1992, Paxton et al. 1994). No further nesting attempts north of Maryland reported. Breeding range also expanded south; first recorded breeding in Georgia in 1988 (Ruckdeschel et al. 1990) and inland at Lake Okeechobee, FL, in 1991 (Smith and Goguen 1993). Rarely bred along Florida Panhandle until 1982, when colony established in St. Andrews Bay, 165 km west of nearest active colony at Cedar Key (Wood et al. 1995). First recorded breeding in Alabama in 1983 when Gaillard I. in Mobile Bay colonized (Jackson 1983).

Breeding range along w. Gulf coast contracted when formerly large populations in Louisiana and Texas (≥50,000 birds) were decimated by pesticides in late 1950s and early 1960s (King et al. 1977b, Blus et al. 1979a). Last natural nesting in Louisiana recorded in 1961; species completely disappeared from state by 1963. In Texas, disappeared from most former breeding areas by early 1960s. No known nesting in 1964 or 1966; from 1965 to 1973, nested only on 3 islands along 50-km section of central Texas coast (King et al. 1977b). Transplantation of young from Florida successfully re-established a small breeding population in Louisiana in 1971 (see Conservation and management: management, below). Continued transplantation and natural colony expansion restored Louisiana population to historical breeding range by 1990 (McNease et al. 1992). In Texas, improved reproductive success following declines in pesticide loads, and possibly immigration from Mexico (King et al. 1985), helped restore population to its historical range by the mid-1990s (Texas Colonial Waterbird Census data).

Range expansions and contractions along Pacific coast of U.S. related to long-term changes in ocean temperature, which affect prey abundance and availability (Jaques 1994). Abundant in autumn in Washington State during the 1800s, when warm waters prevailed, but rare during cool period between 1900 and late 1920s. With onset of another warming period, sightings of postbreeding migrants in Washington increased in 1930s (Jaques 1994) and breeding range expanded north from Channel Is. to Point Lobos, Mon-terey Co., CA (Williams 1927), where nesting occurred sporadically between 1927 and 1966 (Baldridge 1974). Postbreeding range contracted southward after cool-water regime began in 1940s, but expanded north to Washington again in early 1970s, coincident with onset of long-term ocean-warming period. Since 1985, thousands of migrants from s. California and Mexico have annually moved up Pacific coast in late summer and fall to n. Oregon and Washington (Jaques 1994); smaller numbers regularly reach s. British Columbia (Shepard 1999b). Number of postbreeding migrants visiting the Salton Sea in summer increased dramatically between the 1970s and the 1990s (McCaskie 1994, Sturm 1998). A few individuals remained through winter in the early 1990s (McCaskie 1994); breeding first recorded in 1996, year-round resident since (Sturm 1998).

Bred in n. Bahamas (Bimini) and Haiti prior to 1950, but no recent reports (van Halewyn and Norton 1984). Discovered breeding off Caribbean coast of Honduras in 1995 (Bermingham et al. 1998). Formerly bred on Pacific coast of Mexico on Isla Grande de Ixtapa (Guerrero; Melo 1981), and perhaps along Pacific coast of Colombia (Murphy 1936); no recent reports.

Breeding range of Peruvian Pelican expanded southward to central Chile in late 1980s (Simeone and Bernal 2000); concurrent northward expansion of winter range to s. Ecuador (Ridgely and Greenfield 2001).

Pleistocene and prehistoric remains found in California; prehistoric specimens also found in Florida, Puerto Rico, and St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Is. (Brodkorb 1963). Tibiotarsus section found at Native American archaeological site in sw. Illinois (Parmalee 1958) needs confirmation (Brodkorb 1963).