Aristolochia grandiflora

Pelican \Pel"i*can\ (p[e^]l"[i^]*kan), n. [F. p['e]lican, L.
   pelicanus, pelecanus, Gr. peleka`n, peleka^s, pele`kanos, the
   woodpecker, and also a water bird of the pelican kind, fr.
   peleka^n to hew with an ax, fr. pe`lekys an ax, akin to Skr.
   para[,c]u.] [Written also {pelecan}.]
   1. (Zool.) Any large webfooted bird of the genus {Pelecanus},
      of which about a dozen species are known. They have an
      enormous bill, to the lower edge of which is attached a
      pouch in which captured fishes are temporarily stored.
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   Note: The American white pelican ({Pelecanus
         erythrorhynchos}) and the brown species ({Pelecanus
         fuscus}) are abundant on the Florida coast in winter,
         but breed about the lakes in the Rocky Mountains and
         British America.
         [1913 Webster]

   2. (Old Chem.) A retort or still having a curved tube or
      tubes leading back from the head to the body for
      continuous condensation and redistillation.
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   Note: The principle is still employed in certain modern forms
         of distilling apparatus.
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   {Frigate pelican} (Zool.), the frigate bird. See under
      {Frigate}.

   {Pelican fish} (Zool.), deep-sea fish ({Eurypharynx
      pelecanoides}) of the order {Lyomeri}, remarkable for the
      enormous development of the jaws, which support a large
      gular pouch.

   {Pelican flower} (Bot.), the very large and curiously shaped
      blossom of a climbing plant ({Aristolochia grandiflora})
      of the West Indies; also, the plant itself.

   {Pelican ibis} (Zool.), a large Asiatic wood ibis ({Tantalus
      leucocephalus}). The head and throat are destitute of
      feathers; the plumage is white, with the quills and the
      tail greenish black.

   {Pelican in her piety} (in heraldry and symbolical art), a
      representation of a pelican in the act of wounding her
      breast in order to nourish her young with her blood; -- a
      practice fabulously attributed to the bird, on account of
      which it was adopted as a symbol of the Redeemer, and of
      charity.

   {Pelican's foot} (Zool.), a marine gastropod shell of the
      genus {Aporrhais}, esp. {Aporrhais pes-pelicani} of
      Europe.
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