Greece - Dalmatian Pelicans
Huge…improbable fliers…yet graceful, soaring birds…such is the Dalmatian Pelican.
The Dalmatian pelican (Pelecanus crispus) is a massive member of the pelican family, and the world's largest freshwater bird. They are elegant soaring birds, with wingspans that rival that of the great albatrosses.
This huge bird is by a slight margin the largest of the pelican species and one of the largest living bird species. It measures 160 to 183 cm (5 ft 3 in to 6 ft 0 in) in length, 7.25–15 kg (16.0–33.1 lb) in weight and 245 to 351 cm (8 ft 0 in to 11 ft 6 in) in wingspan.
Lake Kerkini, in northern Greece, is the most important place in Europe for the globally threatened Dalmatian Pelican during the winter months. It's also a popular time of year for photographers as the birds have their distinctive breeding plumage.
In January of 2017 myself and Jon and Catherine d’Alessio joined professional photographer, Robert O’Toole http://www.robertotoole.com/) at Lake Kerkini. It was a rare occasion, as the lake was frozen over 90% of its area for only the 2nd time in 50 years. We struggled as much as the pelicans to keep warm and maintain our sense of humor in the face of the wind and cold.
Personal Comment: The Dalmatian Pelicans of Lake Kerkini are certainly beautiful and wild, however many stay on the lake instead of migrating to warmer climes because of the un-natural feeding of trash fish by local fishermen. This practice has evolved into a photo op. I had thousands of images of these pelicans trying to catch dead fish being tossed to them. These ‘action’ photos of pelicans, bills stretched skyward (while interesting and exciting) seemed to me to be un-natural and I decided to present mostly images of this species that I hope are more natural and artful.
Read MoreThe Dalmatian pelican (Pelecanus crispus) is a massive member of the pelican family, and the world's largest freshwater bird. They are elegant soaring birds, with wingspans that rival that of the great albatrosses.
This huge bird is by a slight margin the largest of the pelican species and one of the largest living bird species. It measures 160 to 183 cm (5 ft 3 in to 6 ft 0 in) in length, 7.25–15 kg (16.0–33.1 lb) in weight and 245 to 351 cm (8 ft 0 in to 11 ft 6 in) in wingspan.
Lake Kerkini, in northern Greece, is the most important place in Europe for the globally threatened Dalmatian Pelican during the winter months. It's also a popular time of year for photographers as the birds have their distinctive breeding plumage.
In January of 2017 myself and Jon and Catherine d’Alessio joined professional photographer, Robert O’Toole http://www.robertotoole.com/) at Lake Kerkini. It was a rare occasion, as the lake was frozen over 90% of its area for only the 2nd time in 50 years. We struggled as much as the pelicans to keep warm and maintain our sense of humor in the face of the wind and cold.
Personal Comment: The Dalmatian Pelicans of Lake Kerkini are certainly beautiful and wild, however many stay on the lake instead of migrating to warmer climes because of the un-natural feeding of trash fish by local fishermen. This practice has evolved into a photo op. I had thousands of images of these pelicans trying to catch dead fish being tossed to them. These ‘action’ photos of pelicans, bills stretched skyward (while interesting and exciting) seemed to me to be un-natural and I decided to present mostly images of this species that I hope are more natural and artful.
Dalmatian Pelican
Gliding over Lake Kerkini in early morning light.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalmatian_pelican
