7.18- Pelecanus occidentalis (breed Orientalis)

A Brown Pelican (pelecanus occidentalis) takes wing from its perch on top of Pecan Grove Marina's private Marker #1 at the mouth of Smith Creek. Masts in the background are at Oriental Harbor Marina, across the creek.

Seems like I take a lot of pictures of Pelicans, but they are such cool birds. They always remind me of something that should be on Skull Island in "King Kong" (the original).

I took this picture while sailing around the harbor in a Bauer 10 foot Dinghy. I really wanted to get a picture of the bird perching, because they look like painted wooden carvings... in hindsight I was lucky it decided to take off just as I pointed the camera.

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