Young Brown Pelican

This fellow/gal seemed to be in some distress with the pouch under his/her bill distended. S/He sat on the rocks and let me get quite close with the camera. His/her eyes were partly closed and s/he was obviously uncomfortable in some way. Not being privy to the entire process of pelican digestion, perhaps the behavior was normal, but I'd never seen a swollen pouch that was not quickly emptied.

I'd gone out to the beach for lunch, and by the time I'd finished eating, s/he had recovered from whatever the problem was and sat on a piling preening.