Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Pelicans on the River

































Yesterday afternoon, while I was visiting on the phone with my friend, Anne, who lives in Carson, New Mexico, my neighbor knocked on the door to say I might want to grab my camera and head for the river, pelicans were resting there. I bought this place last year after spring was turning into summer so I missed some of the regular spring occurrences. Apparently, this is one of them.

I put Buddy in his crate and told Anne I'd have to get back to her. Mother Nature had brought some visitors.

As I was heading to the river, another neighbor from down the road stopped and said he'd seen a large group of them where the river meets Whitefish Lake. He estimated at least five hundred altogether with about two hundred and fifty of them right here on my elbow of the river.

I took the steps leading down slowly and quietly, not wanting to disturb them. I wasn't prepared for what I saw:  beautiful white pelicans lining the banks with many more resting on the small island where the river makes the turn. Though I tried to be quiet, a few took flight and flew upriver before circling back and landing again near the island. It was quite a sight.

Maybe spring really is arriving after all.


33 comments:

  1. Wow! That's a really wonderful sight, Teresa. Thanks for the pictures and sharing them with me. I have never seen so many pelicans at once.

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  2. These are excellent photos Teresa! Can we even hope that this is a sign that spring and summer will come to us???

    xo Catherine

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  3. These are magnificent birds to watch. When they fish together it is similar to a ballet watching their syncronized movements. One year I was in a high school class showing a slideshow. When I finshed I explained how I had spent the entire weekend shooting pelicans. A boy raised his hand and asked,"Are they any good to eat?"LOL

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  4. What a treat for the eyes and the soul!!!

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  5. DJan, I hadn't either. It was beautiful.

    Cat, I have my fingers crossed. Way overdue.

    Steve, It's hard to change the mindset of young people sometimes. I've enjoyed watching them soar overhead in small groups. It is a wonderful sight. Ballet sounds nice.

    Betty, It was! It makes spring seem possible.

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  6. That is amazing. All that white. Where do you think they are headed for their final destination? Will they hang around your place long or since this is your first year maybe you don't know yet. What photos !!!!!

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  7. Great photo...I love seeing spring pics! It is almost here isn't it!!! Is Buddy still being a good boy?

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  8. Manzanita, I'm not certain where they are headed. It would be interesting to know. They're still here today. Thanks!

    Lynn, Thanks. It's cold here, but the pelicans offer hope. Buddy and I are doing great. He already tells me when he needs to go out, most of the time. :) He's sleeping through the night, next to or under my bed. Yesterday, he had a playdate with my son and his two dogs. They all had a good time and I had a little break. He is so smart and sooo sweet.

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  9. That's a lot of pelicans. What is the color of the other pelicans seen.

    Do you catch any fish there???

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  10. One Fly! There's a brown pelican, also, which is what I usually see when I go down to Port Isabel/South Padre. This is the American White, which is a bit larger, I guess.

    This will be my first summer here, but I've heard they occasionally catch some pan fish, often it's rock bass, which are usually found to be wormy and inedible. At the dam in town they catch quite a few pan fish and small northerns. Whitefish Lake, which is a chain of lakes, as you probably know, is known for good fishing. The river that runs alongside my property runs into Whitefish.

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  11. That's it you win the prize whatever that is. I get hungry just thinking about eating panfish.

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  12. Sunnies and bluegills with a dusting of corn meal fried up in a pan. Pure heaven.

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  13. I showed my grandson your photos without mentioning where they are. He asked whether we'll see pelicans at Star Lake this summer. Told him we didn't see any last summer, but you never know. We will probably go to a few more places while up there this year, given our new bird-watching interests.

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  14. Nancy, What a nice interest to introduce to your grandson. That appreciation for nature will serve him well throughout his life. I was just outside with Buddy and the pelicans were soaring overhead getting ready to land again. What a sight.

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  15. You bought your place not knowing some of the regular spring occurrences! This is worth a million!

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  16. Paul C., It's definitely worth the "price of admission." Every dollar.

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  17. Oh, what a wondrous thing to see! I would be marking my calendar already for next year, Teresa. I can only imagine the wide and variety birds you will be seeing during this migration season. Enjoy.

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  18. It's a magical place I was led to here. Many surprises already and more, I'm certain, are in store. Thanks, Penny!

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  19. Had no idea they gathered in such large groups. We used to compare birds to planes when I was a kid and the pelicans were definitely the "heavy cargo" squadrons. :)

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  20. Li, I just read today that pelicans travel in pods or squadrons. :) I had no idea. This whole thing has been a wonderful surprise.

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  21. Teresa: They are beautiful and your photographs bring that out. How did Buddy react? Did you keep him in his crate? Good dog!

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  22. Great photo...amazing site. They're beautiful. Thanks for sharing Teresa. How's that pretty puppy doing?

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  23. Sounds like a pelican reunion Teresa...:-)

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  24. Jack, I thought it best to crate Buddy while I got some photos. He was a good boy while I did so. Yesterday, he just sat and watched them soaring overhead rather close. It's fun to watch him react to his ever expanding world.

    Karen, Thank you. He keeps me hoppin' and that's a good thing. When he whines to go out, now he also sits and looks up at my coat as if to say, Don't forget your coat. It's cold outside." He's smart and good lookin'. : )

    Paul, It would seem so. I'm learning more every day what my place offers. It's a good place to Be.

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  25. That. Is. AMAZING!!! Wow! Soooo pretty! And your photography is just terrific, Theresa! Really well done! Thanks so much for sharing!

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  26. Thanks, Joan. It was an amazing sight, indeed.

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  27. A squadron of pelicans!

    Have you ever seen them dive into the water? They're so ungainly, it looks accidental.

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  28. A wonderful bird is the pelican,
    His mouth can hold more than his belly can,
    He can hold in his beak,
    Enough food for a week.
    I'm damned if I know how the hell he can!

    Dixon Lanier Merritt (Not Ogden Nash)

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  29. Linda, I had no idea until I looked it up when a friend asked what they call a passel of pelicans (I thought passel worked pretty good) but there it was squadron (or pod), to name the top two.

    The white and the brown have different ways of fishing. I think the white do this circular thing in a group, the browns dive. I think I have that right. We'll cut them some slack and say it's all part of their act to confuse the fish... :) Am I anthropomorphizing too much?


    Cletis, I had to look him up. A Tennessean of some note. Thank you for gracing my post with a lovely poem. : ) And for introducing Mr. Merritt.

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  30. What a wonderful sight to see all of them together on their migration.

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  31. Linda, I feel so blessed by all the wonderful things that happen here, and everywhere.

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  32. Wow!! That is just so cool. My folks used to own a place where the Pine River flowed into the Whitefish. We loved it there. There were lots of reeds growing along the shore and my mother used to spend hours each year clearing them away so there would be a clear spot for swimming. Never did see pelicans, though.

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  33. Cheryl, What a lovely summer place. It must have been great fun. It's such a beautiful lake.

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