How to Draw an American White Pelican

In this quick tutorial you'll learn how to draw an American White Pelican in 6 easy steps - great for kids and novice artists.

The images above represent how your finished drawing is going to look and the steps involved.

Below are the individual steps - you can click on each one for a High Resolution printable PDF version.

At the bottom you can read some interesting facts about the American White Pelican.

Make sure you also check out any of the hundreds of drawing tutorials grouped by category.

How to Draw an American White Pelican - Step-by-Step Tutorial

Step 1: Let's start the American white pelican by drawing the head. Draw a small round shape with frizzy lines at the back, and a very long pointy beak, leaving a gap for the body.

Step 3: Draw a choppy line down and out into a round shape, and then very choppy at the back for the body.

Interesting Facts about the American White Pelican

The American White Pelican is a huge aquatic soaring bird with broad wings. It lives in North America and flies south to Central and South America in the winter. This pelican is white but does have black feathers on their wings. They tend to be found at inland lakes in the summer and near coastlines in the winter. American White Pelicans eat mostly fish. They eat from the water’s surface, dipping their beaks into the water to catch their food. They do not plunge-dive though like Brown Pelicans do. They can grow as long as 50-65 inches (127-165 centimeters), weigh 158.7-317.5 ounces (4500-9000 grams), and have a wingspan from 96.1-114.2 inches (244-290 centimeters).

Did you know?

• American White Pelicans cooperate when they feed by driving schooling fish into shallow waters. The pelicans can then easily scoop up the fish.
• They do not keep their food in their bill; they swallow the food before flying off.
• By the age of 9-10 weeks, pelican chicks can fly.
• They build their nests on the ground in gravel, soil, or sand.
• Predators of the American White Pelican include coyotes, gulls, Bald Eagles, and foxes.

Lesson plan note: Try to catch fish like an American White Pelican:Fill a large bucket with water, and add fish crackers to the water. Have each child dip his/her head into the water (keeping his/her hands behind his/her back) and try to catch a fish that will be floating on the surface of the water. Children will have fun trying to hunt like an American White Pelican!