Brown Pelican Head Throw

[Doug Brown]

We spent a few days photographing Brown Pelicans during my recent Southern California trip. Getting a good photo of a head throw can be challenging because they often come with no advance warning. But it sure is a cool behavior to observe!

Canon 1Dx, 300mm f/2.8 II, f/9, 1/640, ISO 800, manual exposure, hand held, cloned out a small part of two Pelican heads at the bottom of the frame

[John Robinson]

Wow -that's wierd. !! Looked like a crocus on the thumbnail. brilliant behavioural shot.
Cheers
JohnR

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Doug, certainly something different, and it works for me. I really like the inverted head angle which in turn shows us the inside of the pouch, something not always seen. Comp works well, and I like the overall light and colours. Well captured.

[David Salem]

Good shot of this unique behavior. Nice color and detail on this beautiful male. Well done.
Not sure if you saw or captured it, but they take this pose further back until the pouch wrapes around the head almost fully inverted. Looks really wild. Nice shot.

[gail bisson]

I really like this.
Great lines and nice to see something different.
I especially like your composition.
Gail

[Jonathan Ashton]

Beautiful colours detail and pose/composition.

[keith mitchell]

Doug I love to see something different and this certainly is, gives us food for thought ,like it a lot.

Keith.

[Holger Leyrer]

Wow, this pose is stunning. It is the first time that i see the bird in this pose. I love the details and colors.

[Jim Crosswell]

Great image Doug! I like the unique pose, IQ, exposure and composition. Are the dark lines in the pouch the veins?

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Expertly composed and perfectly timed. A classic head throw image.

[Doug Brown]

Hi Jim. Some of the lines are folds that allow the pouch to expand and others are veins. Here's a 100% crop from another RAW file that transilluminates the pouch a little better; you can see the veins pretty clearly.

[Jim Crosswell]

Thanks Doug it was the veins I was looking at, great details in this image!

[arash_hazeghi]

excellent dynamic pose with great details and beautiful Cali coast saturated colors.

[Bob Serling]

Excellent shot of this behavior. It can be very hard to capture. As you mentioned, there is no warning of when a bird is going to do this, plus because the pelicans tend to bunch together, it can be hard to get a clear, unobstructed shot.

One note about the "head throw" label and a comment Artie made about this being a communication behavior. According to the marine biologists and field ornithologists I've spoken with here in San Diego, the purpose of this behavior is actually to stretch the pouch and keep it limber.

[Marina Scarr]

What a terrific behavioral shot, Doug. Love your comp too.

[Doug Brown]

Thanks for taking the time to comment everyone! Some interesting info too!