Pelicans!

Went for an afternoon walk at Lake Chabot and discovered there are now 23 American White Pelicans cruising around out there. It's so interesting to watch them. They stay in a very tight pack, doing everything together. They even lunge for fish all at the same moment while casually floating on the water. Very different from the Brown Pelican's dramatic plunging dives from the air. This flock was being tailed the whole time by a number of Bonaparte's Gulls (you can see one hovering above them in the picture), looking to get in on the action. The Bonaparte's is a dainty gull and an uncommon winter visitor. The pelicans themselves are uncommon in such numbers--I've never seen more than two on the lake before.