Pelican

People love pelicans because of their flamingo heads, duck feet, and associations with altruism. Folklore has it that our newborns may have actually been delivered by a pelican rather than a stork. They undoubtedly have the beak for it.

Really, though, you should never leave your child—or anything else you cherish—with a pelican. It snaps at everyone and swallows other creatures without regard when it is anxious or hungry. The pelican has preyed on goslings, young penguins, ducks, pigeons, newborn turtles, and chihuahuas.

Pelicans are distinguished by a long beak and a big neck pouch that they utilize to collect prey and drain the water before swallowing it. With the exception of the brown and Peruvian pelicans, they are primarily covered with pale plumage. Before the breeding season, all pelicans develop vibrant colors on their beak, pouches, and exposed face skin. The eight species of live pelicans are sparsely distributed throughout the world, with latitudes spanning from the tropics to the temperate zone. However, they are not present in interior South America, the polar areas, or the open ocean.

The pelican's meal sinks down the throat after being caught up in its bill. The pelican will go to the crop if it is not hungry; else, it will go to the stomach. In the absence of enzymes, mucus softens the prey in the pelican's food storage sac.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Pelecaniformes
Family: Pelecanidae
Genus: Pelecanus