Age, nest initiation, and demographic characteristics of American White Pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) breeding at Marsh Lake, Minnesota

Abstract

ABSTRACT We studied how adult age and condition are related to nest initiation date and estimated survival and age at maturation in the American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos Gmelin, 1789), a long-lived, migratory, colonial-nesting waterbird. Timing of nest initiation in the breeding colony at Marsh Lake, Minnesota, was not related to age or body condition of adults. However, nests were initiated significantly earlier on a more isolated island with higher nest success than another island located nearer to the lake shore. We estimated an adult annual survival probability of 0.813 ± 0.079, similar to that reported for other American White Pelican populations. We estimated the mean age at which American White Pelicans return to nest at Marsh Lake and found that pelicans are unlikely to begin nesting until they are at least 5 years old.