I was on one of my "ride abouts" in Mariposa County when I discovered a surprise on White Rock Road.  White Rock Road winds it's way from Mariposa to Le Grand, through the Mariposa foothills. It is a narrow sometimes one lane road and can be slow going at times.  I was enjoying the huge rocks that sparsely cover the lower foothills when I came around a curve and found myself looking down at a small cattle pond.   I saw this large white bird floating in the middle of the pond.  I took a photo with my 400mm lens and to my surprise discovered it was a White Pelican. 

I knew that the White Pelican does winter along the central California coast and sometimes in the central valley, but I never expected to see one on a pond in Mariposa County.  The other strange thing was that White Pelicans usually live in large flocks and here was this fellow all by himself.   Well not quite by himself there were a few ducks, a Blue Heron, a White Egret and a whole heard of cattle. 

It was late in the evening so I decided I would come back the next day to see if he was still there and try to get some better photos.  The next day he was still happily swimming around.  I sat for along time watching him hoping he would fly so I could get a photo of those huge wings that are tipped with black feathers, but no luck he just continued floating around and I saw him dip his head under the water several times. 

American white pelicans are one of the largest of the birds in North America. They can weigh as much as 30 pounds and their wing spans can exceed nine feet. The White Pelican does not dive for fish as the Brown Pelican does. Instead, it dips its head underwater and scoops up fish with an enormous throat pouch.  You can find out more at : http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/American_White_Pelican.html