Australian
pelicans, cormorants and darters are beautiful waterbirds.
Pelicans, cormorants and darters are a special group of Australian
birds - they are members of seabird group that, despite being adapted
to a life in marine habitat, have chosen to spend most of their life
in freshwater.
While other seabirds are only found on the coasts -
pelicans, darters and most of cormorants also inhabit Australian
inland.
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Pelican Information
Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus)
is one of the most impressive Australian birds, and one of the most
beautiful pelicans in the world. It is a large, mostly white bird with
black wing-edges, a 2.5m wingspan, yellow eye-rings and a massive pink
bill.
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What Do Pelicans Eat
Pelicans are found everywhere in Australia (including Tasmania), except
the waterless plains of inland Western Australia.
They live in open fresh and salt water, often swim in flocks, and eat
mainly fish but pelicans have been know to occasionally also eat ducks
and other smaller birds.
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Australian Pelicans Breeding
Australian Pelicans breed in large colonies, often on islands in
flooding inland lakes, and female lays 2-3 white eggs on a rough
platform on the ground.
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Flying in Flocks
Pelicans can be seen flying alone, but often they fly in
flocks, in V-shape, and at great heights. Being large birds, pelicans
need to circle to gain height, and when they land, they glide low over
water surface.
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Where to See Australian Pelicans in the Wild
Australian Pelicans are easy to see everywhere. They are most obvious
on southern coasts of Australia, but they are also found on other
coasts and in the inland. Even in big cities like Sydney
they swim in the ponds of parklands and visit Fish Markets for some
snack from people. In fishing villages they’ve learned that boat ramps
and fishermen cleaning their catch are worth visiting, and these
occasions make some good photo opportunities, pelicans are very
photogenic birds. Some hot spots to see pelicans in the wild are The
Lakes National Park in Victoria,
and the Lake Eyre and Coorong National
Park in South
Australia. In Monkey Mia in Shark
Bay in Western Australia which is known for
dolphin feedings, there are always large pelicans on the beach.
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Cormorant Bird
Cormorants are also saltwater birds that spend most of their time in
freshwater and are therefore not only found on Australian coasts but
also cover much of the inland. Cormorants often gather in large flocks
near
water, and often attend pelicans.
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Australian Cormorant Birds
There are five species of cormorants in Australia. The only exception
from the fresh-water life is the Black-faced Cormorant
(Phalacrocorax fuscescens),
which is found along the southern coasts of Australia where it inhabits
offshore rocks and islets. All the other
cormorant species are found everywhere in Australia except the
waterless plains in inland Western
Australia. Pied cormorants
(Phalacrocorax varius) prefer large areas of water
and are found
in coastal and inland lakes, rivers, and mangrove habitat.
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More Australian Cormorant Birds Little Pied Cormorant (Phalacrocorax
melanoleucos)
is the smallest of Australian cormorants and it is mostly aquatic. Little
Black Cormorant (Phalacrocorax sulcirostris)
lives in
most estuarine and inland aquatic habitats. Great
Cormorant
(Phalacrocorax carbo) is the largest of Australian
cormorants
and it is found in all coastal and inland aquatic habitats.
Australian Darter
There is only one species of darters in Australia: the Oriental Darter (Anhinga
melanogaster).
The Australian Darter is often found together with cormorants, but the
darter is larger, up to 95cm tall. It has a longer neck than
cormorants, although it has a similar “snake-like” shape, and its beak
is straight and longer than this in cormorants. Like cormorants, it
holds its wings out to dry them when it is out of water.
Where to See Australian Darter
Darter is found everywhere in Australia
except Tasmania
and the waterless plains of inland Western
Australia.
It lives in lakes, rivers, swamps and estuaries and is seldom found in
marine habitats. Like cormorants, darters are easily spotted anywhere
where there is water.
Note:
This site uses
British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will
find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all
correct in the language used in Australia.
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