American White Pelican

Often, unconscious nature photographers irritate me with moving overly close to wild animals, including going off trails and even calling at birds. With this pelican, it wasn’t necessary to take even a step closer, as while walking at a public pond in Marin County, this pelican decided to swim towards where I was standing on a trail, taking photos of Bermuda buttercups, and began preening on a nearby rock. From this respectful distance, I watched as the pelican meticulously preened individual feathers with its elongated beak, eventually walking away while the pelican continued to move and dry its wings. Illustrating the necessity to not force art, especially of the natural world.