By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
The presence of pelicans proved a pleasant surprise.
Arlene and Roy Anderson have lived at Dewey Lake for 20 years and they had never been greeted by a sight such as the 15 hunkered down last weekend.
The pelicans, which winter in southwest states and along the Gulf Coast, appeared Friday night, when it was cloudy and cold.
They don't fly at night.
An entire flock may work communally to catch fish by “herding” them into shallow water or an enclosed area, then scooping fish with pouches that can hold up to three gallons of water.
Even one of the continent's most distinctive birds for an immense bill and wingspan of 96 to 110 inches.
It is one of the largest waterbirds, according to “Birds of North America.”
The other side of the lake, with their home in the background, was a better vantage point for photographing the pelicans with the digital camera they bought for a trip to Alaska last year, said Roy, who has been an audiologist and speech pathologist for both Lewis Cass Intermediate School District and Dowagiac Union Schools.
The pelicans stayed until sometime Saturday morning.
The pelicans appeared to want to stay longer. “They kept going back to the island, but those swans kept coming after them,” Arlene said. “We've had up to 25 swans on the lake this spring. They've been here longer this spring than we've ever seen them.”
The Andersons have also been watching a beaver build a lodge on the channel.