Two Dalmatian pelicans chicks were born at the San Diego Zoo, they were brought from the Safari park and will be taken care by the Zoo staff until they are stronger enough to join their flock.

The Dalmatian species is the rarest of all the pelican species, this species is also the one which grows the largest, the fully grown Dalmatian pelican is around 30 pounds in weight, six feet in length has a wingspan of 12 feet.

Being very rare species they were included in the first breeding program in North America, to reduce its vulnerability. This program began in 2006 and since then 34 chicks bred in San Diego Zoo Safari Park.

These two chicks age 2 and 11 days old.  These chicks were taken to San Diego Zoo Avian Propagation Center after it was determined that their parents will be unable to raise them after the eggs are hatched. They will be hand raised for atleast two months and once they are strong enough, the chicks will be sent back to the Safari Park to join its flock.

Native to Asia and Europe, the Dalmatian pelican nest in wetland and freshwater rivers. However, due to the loss of their habitat, Dalmatian has gone extinct in several regions. Commercial fishing can be considered as the strongest reason for their extinct, as they interfere in their breeding and feeding habitats. With less food for them, sometimes they had to compete for fishes. They may either have been driven out or couldn’t survive with insufficient food. Sometimes Dalmatian are hunted for food, while their bills are prized by herders and used for combing horses.

The global aim of the San Diego Zoo is to bring back all the flora and fauna back from extinction using wildlife conservative efforts. Institute for conservation Research, Safari Park cooperating with the programs this seems an achievable task.