The Annotated Checklist of Georgia Birds lists the American White Pelican as rare in the coastal plain with a late spring date of 10 May. On 30 May 2004, my wife Marie and I were birding the Georgia/Alabama border area of Clay County which includes Lake Walter F. George. We had spotted a laughing gull at the lake earlier in the day and returned to the dam road at 5:15 p.m. to see if we could relocate the gull before ending our day of birding. As I scanned the area of the lake between the dam and the visitors center shoreline with binoculars, I spotted two large white birds on the water. I prepared to set up the spotting scope for a better view, but a boat passed by and flushed the birds which flew south towards our location.

As we stood in the road leading out to the locks, we noted the black flight feathers on the wings of the large white birds. In addition, the birds had a short stocky body with no extension of the legs and a large, light-colored bill. All of these factors made the birds easily identifiable as American White Pelicans. As they flew overhead, I took photos and we watched the birds fly southward down the stream below the dam.

Information about this sighting was posted to Georgia Birders On-line and Pierre Howard returned on 4 June with his son Christopher around 4:00 p.m. They located 3 American White Pelicans in the same area.

Walter F. George Lake Project is located in west central Clay County at the Georgia/Alabama state lines. The visitor’s center is located off Georgia Highway 39 and the road to the dam is just south of the visitor’s center (Delorme 48, G-1).

References:
Beaton, R.G., Sykes, P.W. Jr. and Parrish, J.W. Jr. 2003. Annotated Checklist of Georgia Birds. Georgia Ornithological Society.

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