Pelecanus onocrotalus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	Pelecaniformes	Pelecanidae

Scientific Name:

Pelecanus onocrotalus

Species Authority:

Linnaeus, 1758

Common Name/s:

English	–	Great White Pelican, White Pelican
French	–	Pélican Blanc

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2009

Assessor/s

BirdLife International

Evaluator/s:

Bird, J., Butchart, S.(BirdLife International)

Justification:
This species has a very large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend is not known, but the population is not believed to be decreasing sufficiently rapidly to approach the thresholds under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is very large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

History:

2008	–	Least Concern
2004	–	Least Concern
2000	–	Lower Risk/least concern
1994	–	Lower Risk/least concern
1988	–	Lower Risk/least concern

Geographic Range [top]

Countries:	Native: Afghanistan; Albania; Angola; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Benin; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Botswana; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cambodia; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; China; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Cyprus; Djibouti; Egypt; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Georgia; Ghana; Greece; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; India; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Israel; Italy; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Korea, Democratic People's Republic of; Korea, Republic of; Kuwait; Kyrgyzstan; Lao People's Democratic Republic; Lebanon; Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of; Malawi; Malaysia; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; Nepal; Niger; Nigeria; Pakistan; Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Syrian Arab Republic; Tajikistan; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Uganda; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Viet Nam; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe Possibly extinct: Montenegro; Serbia Regionally extinct: Hungary Vagrant: Algeria; Austria; Croatia; Czech Republic; Denmark; Finland; France; Latvia; Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; Maldives; Malta; Morocco; Netherlands; Norway; Oman; Poland; Portugal; Slovenia; Spain; Swaziland; Switzerland; Tunisia; United Arab Emirates; Western Sahara

Countries:

Native:

Afghanistan; Albania; Angola; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Benin; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Botswana; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cambodia; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; China; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Cyprus; Djibouti; Egypt; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Georgia; Ghana; Greece; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; India; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Israel; Italy; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Korea, Democratic People's Republic of; Korea, Republic of; Kuwait; Kyrgyzstan; Lao People's Democratic Republic; Lebanon; Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of; Malawi; Malaysia; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; Nepal; Niger; Nigeria; Pakistan; Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Syrian Arab Republic; Tajikistan; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Uganda; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Viet Nam; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe

Possibly extinct:

Montenegro; Serbia

Regionally extinct:

Hungary

Vagrant:

Algeria; Austria; Croatia; Czech Republic; Denmark; Finland; France; Latvia; Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; Maldives; Malta; Morocco; Netherlands; Norway; Oman; Poland; Portugal; Slovenia; Spain; Swaziland; Switzerland; Tunisia; United Arab Emirates; Western Sahara

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Behaviour Northern populations of this species are fully migratory¹ and travel via important stop-over sites³. Other populations are sedentary, dispersive^{1, 3} or nomadic, flying over land to seek suitable feeding locations³. The species nests in large colonies¹ of 200 to 40,000 pairs^{3, 4, 5} (occasionally with other species such as Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus)⁶, breeding in the spring in temperate zones, in all months of the year in Africa and from February to April in India¹. It usually fishes in flocks¹ of 8-12 individuals⁴ (up to 123)² and migrates in large flocks of 50-500 individuals⁵. The species regularly flies long distances from breeding or roosting colonies to feed¹, mostly fishing in the early-morning and early-evening². Habitat The species is associated with relatively large, warm, shallow fresh, brackish, alkaline or saline lakes, lagoons^{1, 2}, marshes¹, broad rivers², deltas^{1, 2}, estuaries and coasts of landlocked seas⁵. The species requires secure areas^{2, 5} of extensive reedbeds¹, wet swamps, mudflats and sandbanks³ or gravel and rocky substrates^{1, 2, 5} for nesting on^{1, 3}. Diet The species is entirely piscivorous, preferentially taking fish of between 300 and 600 g in weight¹. Breeding site It nests on the ground either on a pile of sticks and vegetation¹ or in a simple shallow scrape³ in single- or mixed-species colonies (e.g. with Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus)⁶, with a distance between neighbouring nests of c.70-80 cm³. It shows a preference for nesting sites that are inaccessible to ground predators⁴. Management information In the Palearctic Region the installation of floating rafts or wooden platforms as safe nesting sites, and the stabilisation of natural nesting areas by reconstructing islands or installing nylon-encased concrete revetments have been successful measures for increasing breeding success⁸. Erecting markers on electricity powerlines or (preferably) burying the powerlines has been successful in significantly reducing deaths due to collision⁸. Installing a series of horizontal strings spaced at intervals over aquaculture ponds is also a successful measure in preventing the species from depredating farmed fish⁸. .
Systems:	Freshwater

Habitat and Ecology:

Behaviour Northern populations of this species are fully migratory¹ and travel via important stop-over sites³. Other populations are sedentary, dispersive^{1, 3} or nomadic, flying over land to seek suitable feeding locations³. The species nests in large colonies¹ of 200 to 40,000 pairs^{3, 4, 5} (occasionally with other species such as Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus)⁶, breeding in the spring in temperate zones, in all months of the year in Africa and from February to April in India¹. It usually fishes in flocks¹ of 8-12 individuals⁴ (up to 123)² and migrates in large flocks of 50-500 individuals⁵. The species regularly flies long distances from breeding or roosting colonies to feed¹, mostly fishing in the early-morning and early-evening². Habitat The species is associated with relatively large, warm, shallow fresh, brackish, alkaline or saline lakes, lagoons^{1, 2}, marshes¹, broad rivers², deltas^{1, 2}, estuaries and coasts of landlocked seas⁵. The species requires secure areas^{2, 5} of extensive reedbeds¹, wet swamps, mudflats and sandbanks³ or gravel and rocky substrates^{1, 2, 5} for nesting on^{1, 3}. Diet The species is entirely piscivorous, preferentially taking fish of between 300 and 600 g in weight¹. Breeding site It nests on the ground either on a pile of sticks and vegetation¹ or in a simple shallow scrape³ in single- or mixed-species colonies (e.g. with Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus)⁶, with a distance between neighbouring nests of c.70-80 cm³. It shows a preference for nesting sites that are inaccessible to ground predators⁴. Management information In the Palearctic Region the installation of floating rafts or wooden platforms as safe nesting sites, and the stabilisation of natural nesting areas by reconstructing islands or installing nylon-encased concrete revetments have been successful measures for increasing breeding success⁸. Erecting markers on electricity powerlines or (preferably) burying the powerlines has been successful in significantly reducing deaths due to collision⁸. Installing a series of horizontal strings spaced at intervals over aquaculture ponds is also a successful measure in preventing the species from depredating farmed fish⁸.
.

Systems:

Freshwater

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	The species is threatened by habitat destruction through drainage^{1, 2, 3, 8}, the divergence of rivers for irrigation^2,7, agriculture development and industry¹. It is also subject to climatic fluctuations that have a strong influence over water-levels in wetlands: floods leading to the inundation of nesting sites¹ and lowering water-levels leading to the death of fish due to increased water salinity⁷. The species is threatened by persecution^{1, 2} and hunting for sport because of its (minimal) depredation of fish from fish-farms⁸. It also suffers mortality due to collisions with electric powerlines during migration, dispersal or on its wintering grounds and is often found drowned in fishing nets⁸. Disturbance¹, 8 (e.g. from tourism) threatens breeding colonies⁸, and pesticides, heavy metal contamination and disease could have devastating effects on large colonies in the future^{1, 8}. Utilisation Adults of this species are hunted and sold for food at markets in Egypt¹.

Major Threat(s):

The species is threatened by habitat destruction through drainage^{1, 2, 3, 8}, the divergence of rivers for irrigation^2,7, agriculture development and industry¹. It is also subject to climatic fluctuations that have a strong influence over water-levels in wetlands: floods leading to the inundation of nesting sites¹ and lowering water-levels leading to the death of fish due to increased water salinity⁷. The species is threatened by persecution^{1, 2} and hunting for sport because of its (minimal) depredation of fish from fish-farms⁸. It also suffers mortality due to collisions with electric powerlines during migration, dispersal or on its wintering grounds and is often found drowned in fishing nets⁸. Disturbance¹, 8 (e.g. from tourism) threatens breeding colonies⁸, and pesticides, heavy metal contamination and disease could have devastating effects on large colonies in the future^{1, 8}. Utilisation Adults of this species are hunted and sold for food at markets in Egypt¹.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2009. Pelecanus onocrotalus. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 21 March 2010.
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