Nice Dive!
This brown pelican was having himself a great time yesterday in the salt marsh. He would float along quietly and then suddenly, without warning, he would burst up out of the water and do a swan dive down for some fish. They were mostly catching tiny fish from what I could see, which kept them busy for quite a while.
Fun to watch these big birds feed.
Phil Lanoue Photography 
I’ve only seen Pelicans skimming along the waves. Never diving as your photos suggest.
Interestingly and oddly, when fishing together, the brown pelicans will adjust their fishing style to match that of the white pelicans. But then once left alone again, the brown pelicans will revert back to their standard dive style.
You really caught them in nice form.
I like to watch these guys feed but it also hurts my head just watching. They take a pounding with their dive style and potentially shorten their life span. White pelicans are much more casual in their fishing style.
Fantastic action on the part of what looks as though it would be a clumsy bird! I love the way you have caught this, Phil!
The funny thing is how these big pelicans often hit the water like they were just tossed from a moving vehicle.
Perfect – pelican going into a low dive! RH
I reckon their fishing techniques have to be hard on their head and eyes. I don’t think their life span is as long as the white pelicans which fish much less strenuously.
I hadn’t thought about bird dives and lifespans – but I suppose they take their toll. Your sequence was a great eg of a surface dive (as opposed to air dive or dock dive). And to make the feeding comparison with whites. I’ve never seen more than random single whites on Abaco.