WASHINGTON — Much like its death-defying dives for fish, the brown pelican has resurfaced after plummeting to the brink of extinction.
Interior Department officials on Wednesday announced they were taking the bird off the endangered species list, after a nearly four-decade struggle to keep its population afloat.
Now prevalent across Florida, the Gulf and Pacific coasts, and the Caribbean, the bird was declared an endangered species in 1970 after its population was decimated by the pesticide DDT — much like the bald eagle and peregrine falcon. The chemical, consumed when pelicans ate tainted fish, caused them to lay eggs with shells so thin they broke during incubation.
The pelican’s recovery is largely due to a 1972 ban on DDT, coupled with efforts by states and conservation groups to protect its nesting sites and monitor its population, Interior Department officials said.
“Today, we can say the brown pelican is back,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a conference call with reporters in Washington. “Once again, we see healthy flocks of these graceful birds flying over our shores.”
Tom Strickland, assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks at the Interior Department, acknowledged the bird’s coastal habitat still was in danger from rising seas and erosion, but he said wildlife officials were confident the bird was ready to be taken off the list.
