Pelicans are a genus of large water birds of the family Pelecanidae. They have a long beak and a large throat pouch. They drain water from the contents before swallowing the fish. They have mostly pale plumage, the exceptions being the brown and Peruvian pelicans. The bills, pouches and bare facial skin of all species are brightly coloured before the breeding season. The eight living pelican species have a patchy global distribution, ranging latitudinally from the tropics to the temperate zone. They are absent from interior South America as well as from polar regions and the open ocean.