Pelicans return to nest at Great Salt Lake island for 1st time in 81 years

Editor's note: This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a solutions journalism initiative that partners news, education and media organizations to help inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake. By Carter Williams, KSL.com

GRANTSVILLE — Some of Utah's pelicans have found a new home at the Great Salt Lake, after many of the state's pods completely abandoned a long-standing nesting site on another part of the lake last year.

About 1,300 American white pelicans were found nesting at Hat Island during a survey conducted last week by state wildlife biologists in the area north of Stansbury Bay by the Great Salt Lake's western edge, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources reported Monday. It's not the first time pelicans have nested on the island, but it was last recorded in 1943.

The update comes after Utah wildlife biologists determined last year the species had completely abandoned its massive colony on Gunnison Island at the lake's northwestern edge, once home to up to 20,000 nesting pelicans. Biologists reported some birds have returned to the island to nest, but the pelicans remain spread out. READ FULL ARTICLE >>>