National Wildlife Refuge System Commemorative First Class Stamp, 2003

Inspiration: Chester Smith
Author: Marcy Spears

Brown pelicans have lived on the Earth for nearly 40 million years. Yet in the last 100 years they were nearly wiped out from the planet—by humans.

To bring the brown pelican back from near extinction took the creation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the banning of DDT, increased efforts on the part of dedicated volunteers, state and local government entities, and Audubon and other supportative organizations to protect and manage habitats, provide public education, and create new habitats to replace disappearing ones—Audubon's dredge fill island for colonial waterbirds, called Sundown Island.¨

Thirty-six years later, effective December 17, 2009, the brown pelican will be delisted from Endangered Species List. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918) and the Lacey Act (1900) will continue to protect brown pelicans, their nests, and their eggs. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife estimates there are 12,000 breeding pairs along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and 11,000 pairs along the Pacific coast of North and South America.

Although they will be off the endangered list, they are not completely safe. People still need to remember that pelicans and other water birds still suffer from deaths and injury caused by fish hooks, monofilament line, oil or chemical spills, hurricanes or storms, loss of habitat, wind-power sites, predators, and unpredictable food supplies. Vigilance in protecting our wildlife and their habitat must remain a human priority.

Below is an abbreviated list of the high and low spots of this journey.

• Late 1800s–early 1900s: The first effort to protect brown pelicans grew from objections to the wholesale slaughter of pelicans for their feathers—used to adorn ladies’ hats and clothing. Paul Kroegel, a German immigrant who settled in Florida, had a life-long love of birds that spurred him to find a way to protect the pelicans and their habitat on Pelican Island. His and others’ dedication paid off. In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt signed an Executive Order establishing the first National Wildlife Refuge in the United States—Pelican Island.
  
  
• 1923–1924: Audubon arranged a 50-year lease of land from the General Land Office of Texas to provide bird sanctuaries on the Texas coast, and renewed in 1973. In 1924 National Audubon established its largest sanctuary in the marshes of southwestern Louisiana. Since then Audubon’s sanctuary programs have grown—in 1966 a single department was established for managing them.
  
  
• 1939–1945, Introduction of DDT (DichloroDiphenylTrichloroethane): Although it was discovered in 1874 it did not really become used until part way through WWII. It was found to be very effective at killing insects and controlling malaria and lice transmitting typhus. After WWII it was used as an agricultural insecticide.
  
  
• 1962-1972: Silent Spring by Rachel Carson was published in 1962. Carson’s book documented the detrimental effects of pesticides on the environment, humans and in particular on birds and thinning eggshells. Carson’s book triggered a public outcry that eventually led to the ban of DDT use in the United States in 1972.
  
  
• 1973: In 1973 the Fish and Wildlife Service identified only one nesting colony in Texas with six breeding pairs. In comparison, Louisiana experienced total reproductive failure in their brown pelican population.
  
  
• Mid 1980s: Brown pelicans along the Atlantic Coast, including Alabama and Florida, recovered enough to be removed from the Endangered Species List.
  
  
• Today: According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Eastern subspecies of brown pelican along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts includes 12,000 breeding pairs. The Western subspecies found along the Pacific Coast of North and South American is estimated to be 11,000 breeding pairs.
  
  
• Related Reading (in no particular order):
  • Audubon Texas, Coastal Stewardship Program
  • Delisting of Brown Pelican a Victory for Audubon Efforts - 11/12/09
  • Wildlife Sanctuaries and the Audubon Society
  • Fish and Wildlife Service: 50 CFR 17: … Removal of the Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) From the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife; Final Rule
  • Brown Pelican Populations Recovered, Removed from Endangered Species List (News Release, November 11, 2009: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)
  • Texas Coastal Program
  • DDT and Birds (Copyright ® 1988 by Paul R. Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye.)
  • Brown pelican comes back from the brink of extinction (November 11, 2009: Christine Harvey, The Times-Picayune)
  • US takes brown pelican off endangered species list (November 11, 2009: Karin Zeitvogel, AFP)
  • [California] Central Coast's brown pelicans plentiful again (thecalifornian.com)
  • Species Profile: Brown Pelican (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)
  • Brown Pelican Fact Sheets (.pdf) (US Fish & Wildlife)
  • Endangered Brown Pelicans face uncertain future (International Bird Rescue Research Center)
  • Pelican Island Centennial Celebration
  • Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge
  • The Biogeography of the California Brown Pelican