Growling Pelicans

Have you ever heard a pelican growl? It’s a surprising sound to hear coming from the beak of a bird, I can assure you.  I learnt a lot about these gentle giants on a recent holiday to the Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort on the arid northwest coast of Western Australia.  It’s a stunning oasis far, far away from the city landscape in the middle of an arid desert environment. The bay stretches in a classic curve facing west, brick-red sand ridges intersect limestone-white sandy beaches which trim the edges of the unbelievably turquoise waters of the bay.

It’s these shallow waters which are the perfect habitat for hundreds of bottlenose dolphins which live here, and of course, the pelicans.  At first glance, these pelicans are all that we usually picture them to be: statuesque giants, stately and dignified as they strike a pose in full black and white plumage, necks curved politely and salmon-pink beaks neatly tucked in as they survey the world blandly through flat waterproof eyes. This image is further enhanced as they waddle ponderously on webbed grey feet before launching themselves effortlessly onto the water. But bring on the dolphins and the pelicans morph into opportunistic hanger-ons, shadowing the hardworking dolphins like magnets which they cannot shake off, as they hunt in the shallows.  Follow the trail of gliding pelicans, feet paddling elegantly below the surface, and you’re sure to find a dolphin dorsal fin gliding beside them as it herds and chases fish into the shallows.  A sure sign of dolphin success is a streak of grey sending a fish shimmering above the water for an instant before being captured by a snapping dolphin beak or the gulping beak of a pelly.  The pelicans seem quite unapologetic about their lazy eating habits and even steal from the cormorants, before winging their way towards fishermen for a feed.

Even so, they still inspire a sense of awe and wonder as they lift their huge bodies effortlessly into the air or float gracefully downwards in a smooth trajectory to land like a barefoot skier, skimming onto the glassy surface of the ocean.  It was on a silent sunset sea that a group of disgruntled pelicans growled gruffly at the fisherman’s dog that was preventing them from waddling ashore.  They paddled a little closer then growled again, a deep throaty growl which came from the depths of those feathery chests and boomed out across the water.  Hearing the pelicans growl was a further reminder of the surprises nature has in store when you take the time to step into a natural environment with an open mind.