Let’s start with the most iconic pelican photo type: the snack time shots. You’ve probably seen the viral ones where a pet pelican shoves half a dozen fish in their giant bill pouch, then looks up at their owner like they didn’t just steal three extra treats off the counter. According to exotic pet content creator @PelicanPalsTiktok, who has 2.3 million followers for their pet pelican Gary, snack time is the easiest time to get perfect cute pics. “They’re so focused on food that they don’t care if you’re holding a phone 6 inches from their face,” she shared in a 2024 Q&A. “Last week I got a pic of Gary with a fish sticking out the side of his bill, eyes half closed in bliss, and it got 12 million views in 3 days. People just can’t get over how goofy and unapologetic they are about eating.”
Then there are the snuggle pics, which no one expects from a big water bird, but they’re somehow even cuter than the snack shots. A lot of people don’t realize that hand-raised pet pelicans are super cuddly, per the Association of Avian Veterinarians’ 2023 Exotic Pet Care Guide. They love nuzzling their owners’ necks, curling up on the couch next to them, and even sitting on their laps if they’re small enough. One of the most shared pet pelican pics of 2024 was a shot of 6-month-old pet pelican Muffin curled up on her owner’s lap under a knit blanket, only her big orange bill sticking out. It got shared over 3 million times across Instagram and Pinterest, with people commenting things like “I didn’t know I needed a pelican snuggle until now” and “that’s cozier than my cat on a rainy day.”
We can’t forget the baby pelican pics, either. Baby pelicans, also called chicks, look like fuzzy little brown cotton balls with giant feet and tiny underdeveloped bills, and they’re so clumsy it’s impossible not to laugh at their photos. Exotic bird rescue Pelican Harbor Seabird Station regularly posts pics of their orphaned baby pelicans that are being raised for release, and their posts get hundreds of thousands of likes every month. One recent pic of a baby pelican tripping over a rock while trying to chase a butterfly went viral last month, with people calling it “the most relatable clumsy baby content ever.” Even though those chicks are wild and will be released when they’re old enough, people love following their growth through photos, because they’re just that cute.
You’ll also find tons of funny action shots of pet pelicans online that are impossible not to laugh at. There’s the viral pic of a pelican trying to catch a bubble mid-air, his bill wide open and eyes crossed as he focuses on the tiny floating bubble. Another popular one is a pelican who snuck into his owner’s pool and floated around on a inflatable flamingo for two hours, his wings draped over the sides like he was on a luxury vacation. These shots feel so relatable, even though most of us don’t have a pet pelican chilling on our pool floats. They have such big, expressive personalities, and it shines through every photo.
If you’re thinking about taking cute pics of your own pet pelican, there are a few easy tips to get the best shots. First, make sure you have lots of their favorite treats on hand to keep their attention. Second, natural light works way better than flash, since flash can hurt their sensitive eyes, per the Avian Veterinarian Association’s photo guidelines for exotic pets. Third, don’t force them to pose! Pelicans are goofy, spontaneous creatures, and the best pics always happen when they’re just being themselves. You don’t need a fancy camera either, most of the viral pet pelican pics online were taken with regular phone cameras. One of my personal favorite recent pics is of a pet pelican named Kevin who stole his owner’s baseball cap and wore it sideways while he waddled around the backyard. His owner took the pic on her old iPhone 11, and it’s now one of the most popular pelican memes of the year.
A lot of people ask if pelicans even make good pets, and it’s important to note that they’re not for everyone. You need special permits in most places to keep a pelican as a pet, they need lots of space to swim and walk, and they eat a TON of fish every day. But for people who have the time, space, and resources to care for them properly, they’re amazing, affectionate companions that give you endless cute photo content. There’s a whole community of pet pelican owners online who share their pics every day, and it’s such a fun corner of the internet. You’ll see pics of pelicans going on boat rides with their owners, pelicans playing with dogs in the backyard, pelicans “helping” their owners unload groceries (well, helping mostly means stealing snacks out of the grocery bags, but it’s cute anyway).
One of the coolest things about pet pelican pics is that they also help raise awareness about wild pelican conservation, according to a 2024 study from the National Wildlife Federation. When people see cute pics of pet pelicans, they’re more likely to care about protecting wild pelican populations, which are threatened by plastic pollution, oil spills, and habitat loss in many parts of the world. A lot of pet pelican owners donate a portion of their social media earnings to pelican rescue groups, so every time you like or share a cute pelican pic, you’re indirectly helping support wild pelican conservation too. That’s the best part of these cute pics—they’re not just fun to look at, they do good too.