Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) have recently been the subject of much concern among biologists, particularly over their disappearance from the Gulf Coast and breeding failures on the West Coast of North America (see reviews in Keith, Woods and Hunt, 1970; Schreiber and Risebrough, 1972). These reports deal primarily with breeding status, but it is important to analyze their status elsewhere during the winter. McCaskie (1970) described the status of this species in the southwestern United States. This paper presents the results of censuses of Brown Pelicans for several years and for several locations on the northern California coast. Interesting parallels become apparent between inland occurrences of pelicans in the southwest and coastal occurrences farther north.