BirdingWeek: The Brief Pelican

On June 9th, a report of an American White Pelican near Poughkeepsie was circulated in local birding communities. Subsequent reports from Rockland County, and then Westchester County over the next couple of days suggested the bird was heading south down the Hudson River towards coastal areas.

An infrequent visitor to our region, the American White Pelican breeds from the western Great Lakes states across the northern half of the Plains states into southern Canada. Some non-breeding birds remain throughout the summer in wintering areas along the Gulf coast and up to the Carolinas. From western New York down to the mid-Atlantic states, strays, usually individuals, are sighted passing through, mostly in May and June.

Last evening, June 16th, another report of an American White Pelican was received, this one seen settling in for the night on an "island' just west of the Rexford Bridge near Alplaus. I headed there early this morning, hoping for a chance sighting. Nothing was apparent from the north or south sides of the Mohawk River west of the bridge. I decided to head downriver, stopping at every opportunity along the way to check out the river, especially islands, buoys, and structures. From Niskayuna to Latham to Crescent and finally Cohoes, where the water level was very high, and a remarkable volume of water was passing over Cohoes Falls. Oh, and no pelican. But I did get a close up view of the falls: