Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.
PELICAN
Pelicans are birds. There are more than half
a dozen species of pelicans. All of them
have the sack for which the birds are best
known for all over the world. The sack is
like a big bag of skin hanging under their
bill or their mouth. These large carnivorous
birds use them to catch fish.
Many pelicans fish by swimming in a group.
They may form a line or a "U" shape and
drive fish into shallow water by beating their
wings on the surface. When fish collects
in the shallows, the pelicans simply scoop
them up. The brown pelican, on the other
hand, dives on fish from above and traps
them in its bill. Pelicans do not store fish in
their pouch, but simply use it to catch them
and then tip it back to drain out water and
swallow the fish immediately. The American
white pelican can hold some 11.5 litres of
water in its bill. Young pelicans feed by
sticking their bills into their parents’ throats
to retrieve food.
Along with giant pouch, pelicans are large
birds with short legs, and they appear rather
clumsy on land. Once in water, they are
strong swimmers, thanks to their webbed
feet. This means that webbing connects all
four of their toes, even the back toe.
Pelicans are found on many of the world’s
coastlines and also along lakes and rivers.
They travel in flocks. They also breed in
groups called colonies, which typically
gather on islands. The average life span of
pelicans in the wild is about 10 to 25 years
and their average body size is about 1.8
metres but when they open their wings their
wingspan is around 3 metres. These large
birds usually weigh around 13 kgs.
In North America, the brown pelican is
endangered, but populations are recovering
to some extent. Chemical pesticides, which
damage the eggs of pelicans and many other
species, devastate the sea birds.
Pelicans are splendid fliers, too, and can soar
like eagles with their giant wings. Getting
up in the air can be challenging without the
help of the wind. Pelicans must run over
the water while beating their big wings
and pounding the surface of the water with
both feet in harmony to get enough speed
for take off.
How does the brown pelican catch fish?
ABy diving on fish from above
BBy storing fish in their pouch
CBy beating their wings
DBy cornering fish into low waters