Australian Pelican

• It has the longest bill of any pelican in the world, and indeed the longest bill of any living bird.
• It is one of the largest flying birds on the planet, with a wingspan of more than 2.5 m.
• Its scientific name, conspicillatus, means "spectacled", after the ring of bare skin around its eyes.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)

Habitat and environment

Wetlands, lakes, estuaries and coastal waters of Australia, with a presence also in New Guinea, Indonesia, Fiji and New Zealand

Birth weight

Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent

Size at birth

Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent

Sexual maturity

3.5 years

Gestation / incubation

32-35 days of incubation

Litter / clutch size

1-3 eggs per clutch

Sources consulted: IUCN Red List; Wikipedia (Pelecanus conspicillatus); Animalia.bio; Bernis et al. 1994, Ardeola (nombres castellanos recomendados por la SEO); Temminck 1824

Best time: All year round in the Australian wetlands