Back to families

PELECANIDAE - Pelicans (1:8)
PELECANUS Linnaeus, 1758 M - Pelecanus onocrotalus Linnaeus, 1758; type by subsequent designation (G.R. Gray, 1840, A List of the Genera of Birds, p. 80).  1
Pelecanus onocrotalus   Linnaeus, 1758 Great White Pelican
iAfrica, SE Europe, W and C Asia >> SW and S Asia, rarely W mainland SE Asia, (former Cambodia status?)
Pelecanus rufescens   J.F. Gmelin, 1789 Pink-backed Pelican
iSenegal to Somalia, south to Angola, Botswana, E South Africa
Pelecanus philippensis 2  J.F. Gmelin, 1789 Spot-billed Pelican
vS Asia, SE continental SE Asia, S Sumatra >> S China, mainland SE Asia, Philippines
Pelecanus crispus 3  Bruch, 1832 Dalmatian Pelican
vSE Europe to China >> S Asia
Pelecanus conspicillatus   Temminck, 1824 Australian Pelican
vAustralia, Tasmania >> Java, Bali, Wallacea, lowland New Guinea (mainly in south), Bismarck Arch., Solomons, Vanuatu, New Zealand
Pelecanus erythrorhynchos   J.F. Gmelin, 1789 American White Pelican
iSC Canada (British Columbia to SW Ontario) south through USA to N California, Colorado and SW Minnesota >> coasts of S USA to Guatemala
Pelecanus occidentalis4 Brown Pelican
carolinensis J.F. Gmelin, 1789 vCoastal SE USA (Maryland to Texas); coast of Yucatan Pen. >> West Indies, Caribbean coasts of Central America, Colombia and Venezuela
occidentalis Linnaeus, 1766 vS Bahamas, Cuba to Barbuda; coast and islands off N Venezuela, Netherlands Antilles, Trinidad
californicus Ridgway, 1884 vCoastal W USA (Anacapa I. off SW California) and W Mexico (islands off Baja California, in Golfo de California and Islas Marías) >> Pacific coast of Mexico and Guatemala
murphyi Wetmore, 1945 iCoastal W Colombia to N Peru (N Piura)
urinator Wetmore, 19455 iGalapagos Is.
Pelecanus thagus 6  G.I. Molina, 1782 Peruvian Pelican
Coastal C Peru (Islas Lobos de Tierra) to C Chile (Valparaíso)
1 Classification follows Elliott (1992) [Elliott, 1992 #14006] except as noted.
2 Forms a superspecies with P. crispus; see Sibley & Monroe (1990) [Sibley, 1990 #3636].
3 Treatment as a separate species from P. philippensis follows Voous (1973) [Voous, 1973 #4061] and Nelson (2006) [Nelson, 2006 #12286], but see also Dorst & Mougin (1979) [Dorst, 1979 #1408].
4 Forms a superspecies with P. thagus; see Sibley & Monroe (1990) [Sibley, 1990 #3636].
5 Diagnosability questioned by Nelson (2006) [Nelson, 2006 #12286].
6 For treatment as a separate species from P. occidentalis see Wetmore (1945) [Wetmore, 1945 #13698] and Banks et al. (2008) [Banks, 2008 #10765].
Top