Pelican Coloring Pages

Free Pelican coloring pages: 24 printable PDF designs featuring these remarkable fishing birds in portrait, fishing, and habitat styles. Each page can be downloaded as a PDF to print or colored online in the browser.

The brown pelican, the species most people picture, is easily recognized by its huge, pouched bill, which averages about 9 inches long and can expand to hold roughly 2.5 to 3 gallons of water, two to three times what its stomach can actually hold. Contrary to a common belief, pelicans do not use that pouch to store fish for later. Instead, after a pelican dives and scoops up a fish along with a mouthful of water, it tilts its bill downward and drains the water out before tipping its head back to swallow the fish whole almost immediately. Brown pelicans are also the only pelican species that hunts by plunge-diving, folding their wings and dropping headfirst from as high as 60 feet, twisting their head to the left just before impact to protect their throat, while special air sacs beneath their skin cushion the fall. Other pelican species, like the American white pelican, take a completely different approach, feeding cooperatively at the surface by herding fish into shallow water rather than diving from above. The brown pelican holds a special honor as well: in 1966, it became the official state bird of Louisiana, making Louisiana the only U.S. state to choose a seabird as its state bird.

This collection groups its 24 designs into classic portraits and ready-to-print pages, cute and cartoon takes, pelicans fishing, pelicans in nature and habitat, and cultural and symbolic pages, giving colorists several ways to bring this remarkable fishing bird to life.

What Is Inside This Collection

The 24 Pelican pages are split into five natural groups based on style and setting.

Classic Portraits and Ready-to-Print Pages

This is the largest group, covering straightforward standing poses, a step-by-step drawing page, and simplified, larger-outline designs built for quick printing. A gray or white base for the body pairs well with a warm yellow or brown for the pouch and beak.

Cute and Cartoon Takes

This set leans into softer, rounder proportions and playful expressions. These pages trade some of the pelican’s more realistic, prehistoric-looking silhouette for a friendlier, more approachable look.

Pelicans Fishing

This group shows pelicans actively catching fish, diving, or eating, tying directly into their real, dramatic hunting behavior. These pages give colorists room to add splashing water and fish details around the main figure.

Pelicans in Nature and Habitat

This set places pelicans along a beach, in a river, or near flowers, giving colorists a chance to build out a fuller coastal or waterside scene around the bird.

Cultural and Symbolic Pages

This smaller group includes a sports team logo, a page referencing a well-known animated film character, a zoo scene, and a page pairing the brown pelican with Louisiana’s state flower, the magnolia. These reflect the pelican’s real presence in sports branding, popular culture, and state symbolism.

What Pelican Coloring Pages Do

Correcting a widely repeated myth. Many people believe pelicans store fish in their pouch to eat later. Still, the pouch actually works like a temporary fishing net, draining water immediately so the bird can swallow its catch right away. Coloring a pelican page gives a parent or teacher a natural, engaging way to correct this common misconception using a bird kids already find fascinating.

Practicing detail on a genuinely oversized feature. The American Academy of Pediatrics identifies fine motor skill development as a core benefit of structured coloring for children ages 2 through 7, and a pelican’s enormous, expandable pouch gives children practice filling a large, irregularly shaped area with care, distinct from smaller, more uniform bird features.

Understanding a genuinely dramatic hunting strategy. Brown pelicans dive from as high as 60 feet, protected by air sacs that cushion the impact, a level of specialized adaptation that few other birds share. That detail gives children a concrete, exciting example of how an animal’s body can be built for one very specific task.

A calm, coastal focus. A 2005 study in the Art Therapy Journal documented measurable reductions in anxiety following structured coloring sessions. The pelican’s steady, gliding flight and its familiar coastal and beach settings give these pages a naturally relaxed, breezy quality well suited to a calm coloring session.

How to Color Pelican Pages Well

• Body: Base the body and wings in a soft Gray or White, since brown pelicans in breeding plumage show gray upperparts with dark brown below, while the underside stays lighter overall.
• Head: Color the head a pale Yellow, since real brown pelicans develop yellow feathers on the head during breeding season.
• Pouch and bill: Use a warm Brown, Gray, or reddish tone for the long bill and expandable pouch, since pouch color varies by region and can even shift reddish on the west coast.
• Neck: Shade the neck a darker chocolate brown to match the real coloring found beneath a brown pelican’s head.
• Legs and feet: Color the short legs and webbed feet in a muted gray or black, keeping them proportionally small compared to the large body.
• Fishing-scene pages: On pages showing a dive or catch, use blue and white for splashing water, and a silvery tone for the fish, so the action stays clear and easy to follow.

5 Creative Craft Ideas With Pelican Coloring Pages

1. Pouch-capacity fact card

Pair a colored pelican page with a simple fact about how its pouch can hold up to 3 gallons of water, several times more than its own stomach.

2. Myth-or-fact card

Pair a colored pelican page with a short note correcting the common myth that pelicans store fish in their pouch, explaining that they actually swallow their catch right away.

3. Louisiana state symbols poster

Color the Magnolia and Brown Pelican page and pair it with a simple note about Louisiana choosing the brown pelican as its official state bird in 1966.

4. Dive-height comparison

Pair a colored pelican mid-dive page with a fact about its 60-foot dive height, and compare that height to a familiar building or landmark.

5. Nature journal bookmark

Cut out a colored classic portrait page, glue it to cardstock, and trim close to the outline for a durable bookmark.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Pelican coloring pages?

Pelican coloring pages are free printable and online designs featuring these large fishing birds in different poses and settings, including classic portraits, ready-to-print pages, cute and cartoon takes, fishing scenes, and cultural and symbolic pages. This collection includes 24 designs that can be downloaded as PDFs or colored directly in the browser.

Do pelicans really store fish in their pouch?

No. A pelican’s pouch works like a temporary net rather than a storage pocket. After scooping up a fish along with a mouthful of water, the pelican drains the water out and swallows the fish whole almost immediately, rather than saving it for later.

How much water can a pelican’s pouch hold?

A brown pelican’s pouch can expand to hold roughly 2.5 to 3 gallons of water, two to three times the capacity of its own stomach.

How high do pelicans dive to catch fish?

Brown pelicans, the only pelican species known for plunge-diving, can dive from as high as 60 feet, folding their wings and dropping headfirst into the water, protected by air sacs beneath their skin that cushion the impact.

Which U.S. state has the pelican as its state bird?

Louisiana adopted the brown pelican as its official state bird in 1966, making it the only U.S. state to choose a seabird for this honor. The bird also appears on the Louisiana state flag and seal.

Do all pelican species dive to catch fish?

No. Only the brown pelican and its close relative, the Peruvian pelican, hunt by diving. Other species, like the American white pelican, feed cooperatively at the water’s surface by herding fish into shallow water rather than diving.

Are Pelican coloring pages suitable for young children?

Yes. The simplified, ready-to-print pages and cute, cartoon-style designs work well for toddlers and young children, while the detailed fishing scenes and habitat pages give older kids and bird lovers more to work with.

How many Pelican coloring pages are available to download?

This collection includes 24 designs, covering classic portraits and ready-to-print pages, cute and cartoon takes, fishing scenes, habitat pages, and cultural and symbolic pages. Every page can be downloaded as a free PDF or colored online.

Start Coloring

Download any page by clicking the design. No account, email, or payment is required. Pages print directly from the browser at full resolution or open in the online coloring tool for screen use. Share finished pages on Facebook or Pinterest with the share buttons at the top of each design page.