How to draw a pelican — easy step by step drawing ideas

Pelican drawing ideas are a summertime hit in my studio, especially with kids who've just come back from a trip to the beach. Everyone remembers the pelican perched on the dock post, and everyone remembers that enormous beak. It's such a funny, friendly-looking bird, and drawing one always gets a laugh when the pouch goes on.

Here's the secret I share with every new student: a pelican is really just a big oval body, a curvy S-shaped neck and a small round head. The magic comes from the very long beak and the big rounded throat pouch hanging underneath it. Once those two shapes are in place, nobody could mistake your bird for anything else.

In this tutorial we'll draw a white pelican standing in side view on a wooden dock post, working through six easy steps on the practice sheet below. I'll share the pro tips that help my youngest artists the most, the three mistakes that quietly turn a pelican into a goose or a stork, and a few troubleshooting fixes for the tricky neck curve. Grab a pencil and an orange crayon, and let's get drawing.

The 6 steps to easy pelican drawing ideas

Step 1 — Draw the body

Start with one big oval in the lower half of your page for the pelican's body. Tilt it very slightly so the back end sits a little lower than the front. Press lightly, since this is a guide shape, and make it generous — pelicans are large, heavy birds.

Leave plenty of room above and in front of the oval. The neck, head and that extra-long beak all stretch up and forward from here, so if the body sits too high or too far to one side, the beak will run right off the page.

Step 2 — Add the neck and head

From the top front of the body, draw a curvy S-shaped neck rising up. Draw it as two parallel curved lines: the neck bends back toward the body first, then curves forward again near the top. Pelicans often rest with their necks tucked in this cozy S-shape.

At the top of the neck, draw a small round head. Keep the head quite small compared to the big body — about a quarter of the body's width. The beak we add next will make the head look much bigger, so it's fine to start small.

Step 3 — Add the long beak

From the front of the head, draw a very long, straight beak stretching forward. It should be much longer than the head — at least three or four times as long as the head is wide. Draw the top edge as one long straight line and let it end in a small hook pointing downward at the tip.

Draw the bottom edge of the beak as another straight line, nearly parallel to the top, so the beak looks like a long, flat bill. Angle the whole beak slightly downward so it rests comfortably against the neck, the way pelicans usually hold it while standing.

Step 4 — Add the pouch

Now for the most fun part. Under the beak, draw a big rounded throat pouch — a long, saggy curve that starts near the tip of the beak, dips down in a deep U-shape, and comes back up where the beak meets the head and neck. It should look like a stretchy bag hanging from the bottom of the beak.

Pelicans use this stretchy pouch like a fishing net to scoop fish out of the water, then drain the water out before swallowing. You can make it as round and droopy as you like — a bigger pouch makes your pelican look even sillier and more charming.

Step 5 — Add the wing, eye and legs

On the side of the body, draw one large folded wing, starting near the shoulder and stretching back past the end of the body. Finish the back of the wing with a few long, pointed feather tips fanning out, like the fingers of a glove. Add a small round eye on the head, just above where the beak begins, with a tiny white highlight.

Under the body, draw two short, sturdy legs with wide webbed feet. Webbed feet look like little triangles or fans with three toes joined by skin. Stand your pelican on top of a wooden dock post — a tall rectangle with a flat top and a few wood-grain lines.

Step 6 — Finish and color

Go over the lines you want to keep, then gently erase leftover guide marks, especially where the neck joins the body and where the pouch meets the neck. A clean outline really helps a mostly white bird stand out on white paper.

Leave the body, neck and head white, and color the feather tips at the end of the wing gray. Color the long beak and the big throat pouch a warm orange-yellow, and the webbed feet orange. Finish the dock post in brown, and add blue water or sky behind if you'd like.

Common mistakes to avoid

The beak is too short

A short beak is the fastest way to lose the pelican look. With an ordinary-sized beak, the bird can easily turn into a goose, a duck or a swan.

Make the beak at least three or four times as long as the head is wide. It will feel too long while you're drawing it — that's exactly right for a pelican.

The pouch is too small or tucked away

A tiny pouch hidden under the beak makes the pelican look like a heron or a stork. The pouch is the pelican's most famous and funniest feature.

Let the pouch hang in a big, deep, droopy U-shape under the beak, with the deepest part closer to the head.

The neck is drawn stiff and straight

A tall, straight neck makes a pelican look like a flamingo or a crane standing at attention. It also makes the heavy beak look like it's about to tip over.

Draw the neck in a relaxed S-curve, bending back toward the body first and then forward. That tucked shape supports the big beak and looks much more natural.

Troubleshooting

My pelican looks like a goose

This almost always comes down to the beak and pouch. Lengthen the beak dramatically, add a small downward hook at the tip, and draw a big droopy pouch underneath. Those two changes instantly turn a goose into a pelican.

The white body disappears on the paper

Outline the body with a clear, dark line, then add light-gray shading underneath the body, under the neck and along the bottom of the wing. A blue sky or water behind the bird also makes the white feathers stand out beautifully.

The webbed feet look like chicken feet

Connect the toes with skin. Draw three toes spread out, then join them with a curved line from toe tip to toe tip so each foot looks like a small fan or paddle. Coloring the whole foot orange also helps.

Key takeaways

FAQ

Is a pelican easy to draw for kids? Yes — a cartoon pelican is built from a big oval, a curvy neck, a small circle head, a long beak and a droopy pouch. There are no tricky proportions, so most children aged five and up can finish this sheet in about fifteen to twenty minutes.

How do I draw a pelican's pouch? Draw a long, saggy curve that starts near the tip of the beak, dips down in a deep U-shape, and comes back up where the beak meets the head. Make the deepest part closer to the head so it looks heavy and droopy, like a real stretchy pouch.

What colors do I need for a pelican drawing? White for the body, neck and head, gray for the wing tips and light shading, orange-yellow for the long beak and throat pouch, and orange for the webbed feet. Brown for the dock post and blue for the water or sky finish the scene.

What's the difference between drawing a pelican and a swan? A pelican has a very long straight beak with a big rounded throat pouch hanging underneath, and it stands on short legs with webbed feet. A swan has a short orange beak with no pouch and a long, graceful neck held in a smooth curve while it floats on water.

And there is your pelican! Whether the pouch came out neat and round or wonderfully droopy, you just drew one of the funniest birds at the beach. Try drawing it again with a little fish peeking out of its pouch, or add a few seagulls flying overhead, and come back tomorrow for a new tutorial.

More tutorials: All tutorials · How to draw a flamingo · How to draw a swan · How to draw a puffin