Hungry Brown Pelicans on Oregon Coast, Dec. 2

Brown Pelicans along the West Coast are hungry. For whatever reason, their staple, Sardines and Anchovies, are not as plentiful this year. U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials say they are concerned and in an information gathering mode right now. That doesn’t sit well with conservation organizations such as the National Audubon Society. They are worried that the plight of the Brown Pelican is a low priority because of budget cuts and other priorities. The California Brown Pelican was declared an Endangered Species in 1970; however, it made a recovery and was removed from the list in 2009. The 2013 survey by the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex showed 7,018 Brown Pelicans along the Coast. That’s about half the average of the past decade, and the lowest number since 1999. Sardines are cyclical. Fishermen have been coming back from sea off British Columbia with little or no catch. The Pacific Fishery Management Council, or PFMC, puts their overall biomass at 28-percent of a peak in 2006.