Where to see
Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve leads · 12 parks ranked by real sighting rates
Share of wildlife watchers reporting an American White Pelican during a day in the park, from citizen-science data (GBIF)
| # | Park | Country | Sighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Padre Island National Seashore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Ciénaga de Zapata | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 5 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Riding Mountain National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Celestún Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 9 | Voyageurs National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 11 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve
In Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve, Mexico, about 50% of wildlife watchers report an American White Pelican sighting on a given day, the highest of the 12 parks where we can rate it, from GBIF citizen-science data.
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and more
After Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve, the next-best odds of seeing an American White Pelican are in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (United States, about 40%), Padre Island National Seashore (United States, about 40%) and Ciénaga de Zapata (Cuba, about 30%). Outside North America, the best option is Ciénaga de Zapata in Central America (about 30%).
It depends on the park
In the top parks, the best months are December to March in Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve (about 70%), January and February in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (about 60%) and March in Padre Island National Seashore (about 60%), as the share of wildlife watchers who report an American White Pelican on a given day. Each park's American White Pelican page has the full month-by-month chart.
