Budapest birdwatchers delight at rare pelican visit

A Dalmatian pelican spotted near Gellért Hill in central Budapest accidentally made its way to the city and did not escape from a zoo or a house, index.hu reported the Hungarian Ornithological Association as saying. The association cited the lack of a tracking tag on the animal as evidence that it came from the wild.

The unusually cold and long winter (at least compared to recent years) was the likely reason the bird found itself in Budapest, where the Danube contains an exceptionally high number of fish. This winter has also seen the appearance of various species of owl and falcons in the city.

Over the previous weeks, birdwatchers noted a pair of pelicans in the western part of Hungary, and it would appear that one of them finally made it to Budapest. Over the past week the pelican has moved further south to a quieter stretch of river in southern Buda. It appears to be healthy from all outward appearances.

As recently as a little over a century ago, southeastern Hungary was part of the Dalmatian pelican's range, but ever since, they have become only occasional visitors to Hungary, with their primary nesting area being the Danube delta.

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