A pelican with a large bill pouch that feeds on fish in lakes and wetlands.
The plumage is pale gray-white, and a large pouch hangs beneath the bill.
At Bulgaria’s Lake Srebarna, Dalmatian Pelicans nest on floating reed beds. In 2000, 30 of 85 nests were on new platforms, and the colony raised 110 chicks. In 2008, wild boar destroyed every nest at the colony. Forty pairs moved about 850 m to another reed bed and raised 65 chicks; the remaining birds abandoned the site. Higher platforms and fencing were added later.
Records from 1955–2024 show average chicks raised per nest rising from 0.77 in 1955–1975 to 1.04 in 1990–2024. Nest numbers still varied from 7 to 150 a year, with 15 in 2024. Recent records also note raccoon dogs and golden jackals raiding nests. This single-colony history shows how breeding success can improve while nest numbers remain changeable and predators still affect the site.
IUCN Red List · Near Threatened (NT) · Global species-level assessment
BirdLife International’s 2018 global Red List assessment, last assessed in 2017, lists the Dalmatian Pelican as Near Threatened (NT), with a decreasing trend and an estimated 11,400–13,400 mature individuals. The 2023 IUCN Green Status gives it a 56% recovery score; ecological function is retained in two of six known spatial units. It records major conservation gains along the Black Sea–Mediterranean flyway. A European project report covering September 2019 to March 2025 records 12 nesting platforms built in Bulgaria and Ukraine, and more than 11 km of power lines in Bulgaria and Romania fitted with bird diverters. In Greece, 4 km of lines were insulated and another 4 km buried. The report describes the Greek population as stable and reports increases of 20% in Romania and 40% in Bulgaria.