Longest bill of any living bird

The Australian Pelican, also know as Goolayyalibee, is a large water bird, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia and New Guinea. Medium-sized by pelican standards: 1.6 to 1.8 metres long with a wingspan of 2.3 to 2.5 metres and weighing between 4 and 7 kilograms. Predominantly white, with black and white wings and a pale, pinkish bill. The bills of the males are larger than those of the females. The bills of pelicans are large, giving rise to the rhyme The Pelican by Dixon Lanier Merritt:

A wonderful bird is the pelican
His bill will hold more than his belican.
He can take in his beak
Enough food for a week
But I’m damned if I see how the helican.

This photo was taken at Wynnum Creek. Photo: Robert Whyte

Close-up of Head. Photo: Derek Boddington

Pelicans on land. Photo: Derek Boddington