Pelican (Heb. qâ’ath). Large-billed web-footed bird. However, the exact species to which the Hebrew term refers is not known, although it has been noted that the pelican is an appropriate symbol of utter loneliness and despondency as expressed by the psalmist (Psa 102:6). Qâ’ath appears 5 times in the OT (Lev 11:18; Deu 14:17; Psa 102:6; Isa 34:11; Zep. 2:14). The pelican is frequently found in the rivers, lakes, and swamps of Palestine, sometimes on trees, with its long beak resting on its chest, but it would not be expected to be found in deserts or among ruins (Isa 34:11; Zeph. 2:14) like the owls and the vultures. The qâ’ath is on the list of unclean animals (Lev 11:18; Deu 14:17). Hair. See Hair.
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
large aquatic and web-footed bird, with a wide flattened beak. The upper jaw ends in a strong downward hook, over the tip of the lower jaw. It has a bag of bare skin on its lower jaw. It has a bare face and throat, short legs, and a rounded tail. It can weigh up to 15 kilograms, and its wingspan can reach 3 meters. It abounds in the Nile. It was considered an unclean animal, Lev 11, 18; Dt 14, 17. Its consideration as an unclean bird is part of the desolation of Edom, Is 34, 11.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
see BIRDS
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
Bird that inhabits the seashore, lakes and fish ponds. Its name, in Hebrew, is derived from a verb that indicates the act of vomiting. The p. It has a bag under its beak and it moves in a particular way, as if it were a spasm. The same Hebrew word is used to designate a bird that inhabits desolate places or ruins, the †œp. of the desert† (Ps 102:6; Isa 34:11; Zep 2:14). It is not known for sure if it is the same p. sea or other bird. Some speculate that it was a kind of owl that also made a movement that mimicked that of p. It was not fit to eat (Lev 11:18; Deu 14:17). †¢Bible animals.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
tip, FAUN LEYE BIRDS
vet, (Heb. “Ka’ath”, probably meant “one who vomits”) (Is. 34:11; Zeph. 2:14). According to the Law, it is an impure bird (Lev. 11:18; Dt. 14:17). He lived in the desert (Ps. 102: 7), in the ruins (Is. 34:11; Zep. 2:14). It was possibly the common pelican, “Pelecanus onocrotalus”, white, with light pink tints, although it frequents rivers and lakes in preference to ruins, unless they are surrounded by swamps. Web-footed bird, its legs are admirably suited to the aquatic environment, although it can also perch on trees. It has a long beak whose lower part has a membranous bottom, where the bird transports the fish to feed its chicks. The height of the pelican varies from 1.50 to 1.80 m.; its wingspan, which generally exceeds 3.5 m., sometimes reaches 4 m. Uncommon in the Sea of Galilee, this bird is found scattered along the banks of the Nile and in shallow Egyptian lakes.
Source: New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
It is aquatic, web-footed, with a slender figure, which is why it has always been the subject of beautiful legends. One of them is that the female, in danger of death and in the absence of food, wounds her chest with her sharp beak to feed her young. This led to compare Christ with the pelican, since the Master gave his life for his disciples
Pedro Chico González, Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy, Editorial Bruño, Lima, Peru 2006
Source: Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy
(Heb. qa·´áth).
The translators of the Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate related the Hebrew word qa·´áth with the “pelican”, one of the birds that the Mosaic law classified as “unclean”. (Le 11:13, 18; De 14:11, 12, 17)
The pelican is one of the largest flying birds, reaching 1.5 m. in length and a majestic wingspan of almost 3 m. Its yellowish beak is straight, long and ends in a kind of hooked nail. The bag hanging from the lower jaw is almost imperceptible when empty. His gait is heavy, but his flight is sturdy and graceful; they have been known to nest even up to 100 km from the places where they fish. They are highly skilled fishermen, and their webbed feet allow them to move quickly through the water.
After eating its fill, the pelican usually flies to a solitary spot, where it adopts a melancholy posture, burying its head on its shoulders and remaining so still that it could be mistaken for a white stone from a distance. He remains in this posture for several hours at a time, thus resembling that state of quiet melancholy alluded to by the psalmist when illustrating the intensity of his grief: “I am like the pelican in the desert.” (Ps 102:6) Here the word “wilderness” does not necessarily refer to a barren area, but simply to a place far from populated areas, perhaps a swampy area. The marshy lands of the northern part of the Jordan Valley are still the habitat of pelicans during certain seasons. Three varieties of pelicans are found in Israel. The most common is the Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus), while the Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) and the African Pelican (Pelecanus rufescens) are less abundant.
The pelican shows a clear preference for uninhabited places where it is not bothered by man. There it nests and hatches its young, and also retires after fishing. Due to its penchant for lonely and desolate places, the Bible uses it as a symbol of utter desolation. To symbolize the coming desolation of Edom, Isaiah predicted that the pelican would take possession of that land. (Isa 34:11) Zephaniah prophesied that pelicans would dwell among the pillar capitals of Nineveh, signaling total ruin and the complete disappearance of human life. (Zeph 2:13, 14)
Source: Dictionary of the Bible