Louisiana has long enjoyed the nickname of the Pelican State. Not only is the Brown Pelican our state bird, but the Brown Pelican adorns our state flag, the state seal, the official state painting and is one of three symbols displayed on the US Mints Louisiana state quarter.
If you visit south Louisiana today, you’ll probably see many pelicans paddling around our bayous, flying over our wetlands and diving out of the sky for their dinner. But had you visited our state in the 1960s, you would have been hard-pressed to find one of these unique creatures. Pesticide use caused pelicans to stop nesting along the Louisiana coast in 1961, and they completely disappeared by 1966. Louisiana began attempting to re-populate its coastline by transporting Florida fleglings into the state. The US Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Brown Pelican as an endangered species in 1970, but the Federal Government declared the Brown Pelican “recovered” in Louisiana in 1995 . Today, more than 40,000 Brown Pelicans call “The Pelican State” their home and we hope that number keeps growing.
We also enjoy welcoming the migrating American White Pelicans each fall in anticipation of their winter vacation in paradise.
If you think it’s important to save coastal Louisiana for our Brown Pelicans and all of the other creatures that call it home, let us know. Send your Why to photoproject@bayougrace.org today and we’ll add you to our Why Gallery.
A funny old bird is a pelican. His beak can hold more than his bellican. Food for a week He can hold in his beak, But I don’t know how the hellican.
GREAT POST !!!! I loved it