A common bird (66 cm/26 in in length) with a white head and chest, gray wings, and a bright yellow beak. They exist from British Columbia, Canada all the way down to Baja Mexico.
This bold scavenger forages on a wide variety of food, from small fish to intertidal invertebrates to human food. It has even been known to steal fish from pelicans’ beaks, seafood from an otter that's feeding, and milk from sleeping seal mothers on the beach! Pelicans will also eagerly steal your sandwich if you leave it unattended. (Please don't feed gulls or any other animal at Point Lobos.)
See the orange spot on the adult’s beak? Chicks will peck at that spot to make the parent regurgitate (spit up) food for them. The fuzzy chicks are fed this pre-digested meal for several weeks.
Photo credit: ©Kip Evans
