{"id":60145,"date":"2019-09-12T05:16:22","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T11:16:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=60145"},"modified":"2026-04-13T10:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T15:32:12","slug":"american-white-pelican-at-fish-springs-national-wildlife-refuge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/09\/12\/american-white-pelican-at-fish-springs-national-wildlife-refuge\/","title":{"rendered":"American White Pelican At Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AmericanAmerican White Pelican – White on Blue – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The weather has changed here in northern Utah and temps have finally gotten cooler. Snow has already fallen along Mirror Lake Highway in the Uinta Mountains and in some areas of the Wasatch Mountain range too.<\/p>\n

Yesterday the high only got to 62\u00b0F here at home which was lower than some of the low temps last week when we were still having temps in the upper 90’s and even a day that reached 100\u00b0F.<\/p>\n

It feels marvelous to have cooler days after a summer where there were days that were just too hot.<\/p>\n

As usual when the temps start dropping I think of the birds I might see during migration, the birds I’ll see here during the winter and about the birds I will miss while they are on their wintering grounds.<\/p>\n

The American White Pelicans that breed here in northern Utah will be migrating soon and some have already begun their long journeys.<\/p>\n

While thinking about that last night I remembered this photo I took of an American White Pelican earlier this year while I was at Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge<\/span><\/a> in April and about how much I enjoy seeing this big, white, charismatic birds on the wing.<\/p>\n

The refuge is an oasis in the desert and although it is a long, dusty drive from Salt Lake City birders and bird photographers believe that going there is well worth the trip.<\/p>\n

I photographed this pelican after it lifted off from the water at the refuge, the background is actually part of the Fish Spring Mountains, I am not sure what caused the single whitish specular highlight below and in front of the pelican but I decided to leave it as it was.<\/p>\n

The lighting I had wasn’t the best but for some reason I really like this photo of the American White Pelican on the wing over the refuge because of the contrasts between the whites and blues in the frame.<\/p>\n

I haven’t been to Fish Springs NWR since April, I may need to pack a picnic lunch and head out there on a day trip again soon.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my American White Pelican photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n

\"BrightBright blue skies over Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge – Nikon D810, f10, 1\/2500, ISO 800, Nikkor 18-200mm VR at 18mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The lighting I had wasn’t the best but for some reason I really like this photo of the American White Pelican on the wing over the refuge because of the contrasts between the whites and blues in the frame.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":158341,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,27,726,548,26],"tags":[4004,3966,6076,5007,10630,7673,4052,4122,4069,4154,4,706,4092,4018,165,3996,4095],"class_list":["post-60145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-white-pelicans","category-avian","category-fish-springs-nwr","category-juab-county","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-american-white-pelican","tag-blue","tag-bright","tag-fish-springs-mountain-range","tag-fish-springs-range","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-mountains","tag-pelecanus-erythrorhynchos","tag-pelican","tag-pelicans","tag-refuge","tag-sky","tag-spring","tag-water","tag-wetlands"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-white-pelican-fish-springs-nwr-mia-mcpherson-1601.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-fE5","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4851,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/04\/21\/american-white-pelicans-of-the-great-basin\/","url_meta":{"origin":60145,"position":0},"title":"American White Pelicans of the Great Basin","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 21, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"During the winter months I miss seeing large flocks of American White Pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) soaring in the thermals, in the past few weeks I have been delighted to see them again.","rel":"","context":"In "American White Pelicans"","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fluffed up American White Pelican, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/american-white-pelican-fluffed-mia-mcpherson-4670.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/american-white-pelican-fluffed-mia-mcpherson-4670.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Pelicans","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 24, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge there were two American White Pelicans that were close enough to photograph as they floated on the Bear River, it was a cloudless morning so the river was a gorgeous blue which always sets off the whites of these big, beautiful birds.","rel":"","context":"In "American White Pelicans"","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American White Pelican afloat on the Bear River, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/american-white-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-8745.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/american-white-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-8745.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/american-white-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-8745.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/american-white-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-8745.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":60840,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/10\/16\/utahs-long-staying-rare-brown-pelican\/","url_meta":{"origin":60145,"position":4},"title":"Utah’s Long-staying Rare Brown Pelican","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 16, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed Utah's long-staying rare Brown Pelican again yesterday morning at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and as I took photos of it I worried about its future.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Vagrant Brown Pelican preening, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/brown-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-9741.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/brown-pelican-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-9741.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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