DRIVING over the Grafton St bridge on a frosty morning, the last thing you'd expect to see is a majestic pelican flying low over the road and softly landing in the foggy Condamine River.

But that's the very sight greeting East Warwick residents the past few mornings, with one resident saying the pelican looked "a bit lost".

"Usually you see them near the beach or catching fish in the warmer dams or creeks up north," the Grafton St resident said yesterday morning.

"This bloke looks a bit out of place here doesn't he?"

Seeing pelicans in the Condamine River isn't as far-fetched as people may think, says Australian Seabird Rescue projects and research manager Rochelle Ferris.

"There's a large population of pelicans across the whole Murray-Darling Basin which the Condamine feeds into, and most of the basin is in dry conditions at the moment," Ms Ferris said.

"So when the system dries out they'll gravitate to places like Leslie Dam or even the Condamine River where there's water all year 'round."

She said the pelicans would move back to breeding grounds come summer, with the most popular spot being the Currawinya National Park in far south-west Queensland where they breed in the thousands.

Ms Ferris said Rose City residents should "enjoy the pelicans", who may appear alone or in a small group around the Condamine River until the warmer months.

"They're very social creatures; often this time of year you'll see some with jet black and bright white feathers, the younger birds are motley brown and lighter colour and they'll hang out with the older ones learning how to feed," she said.

A rescue mission?

Warwick parkrun participants have been concerned for weeks about one particular pelican swimming in the Condamine near the Queen's Park skate bowl, with a deep hole in its forehead and tangled in fishing line.

Ms Ferris said Australian Seabird Rescue were aware of the injured bird but as long as it was swimming about in apparent good health it was best to leave it alone.

"As long as the bird is doing all its vital things - it's flying, it's eating, it's preening itself, there's probably not a lot of reason for us to intervene," she said.

"If it has line entanglement though that's a big issue and there may be a chance to catch it and get some help."

If you spot the injured pelican, phone 02 6686 2852 or 0428 862 852 or visit seabirdrescue.org.

Share your photos

Have you snapped a photo of the resident pelicans along the Condamine River? Email them to edit@warwickdailynews.com.au or share them to our Facebook page.

Pelican facts

 Size: 1.6 to 1.8 metres

 Weight: up to 7 kg

 Wingspan: up to 3.4 metres

 Lifespan: 25 years

 Pelicans fly very high and very low. They can skim the surface of the water with a long, controlled gliding motion and they can rise to altitudes of 3000 metres. They can ride the thermals and reach a

speed of 56kmh. They can stay aloft for 24 hours.

 Their bill is 40-47cm and can hold 9-13 litres of water.

 According to the Guinness Book of Records, they have the biggest beaks in the bird kingdom.

 They have four webbed toes.

 They're found on all continents except Antarctic.

 Groups of pelicans are known as pods, scoops or squadrons.

 Pelican fossils have been dated at 40 million years.