Five comprehensive surveys of American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) nesting colonies were conducted in the United States between 1931 and 1982 (Thompson 1933; Lies and Behle 1966; Sloan 1973a, 1982; Sidle et al. 1985). In 1979, Sloan (1982) found only 17 active breeding colonies in the United States. Although this represented an increase of three nesting colonies since 1972, the overall breeding population had declined (Sloan 1973a, 1973b, 1982). Therefore, Sloan (1982) recommended that the species be classified as threatened.