American white pelicans make a stop on the Fox River in Yorkville

An estimated 200 American White Pelicans landed on a small island in the middle of the Fox River near downtown Yorkville earlier this week.

The majestic birds are traveling northwest from the Gulf Coast region towards their breeding grounds in the wetlands of the northern Great Plains in the U.S. and Canada.

The pelicans have become a common site every spring along the Fox River in neighboring Kane County over the last two decades, but this is the first year that homeowners along the river in Yorkville have reported seeing the distinctive birds with their bright white feathers, gray/black wing tips and large, pouched bills.

Like other migratory birds drawn to rivers and streams, the pelican population has been on the upswing since the 1970s, according to Audubon Society.

The typical pelican is larger than the Canada geese that have become common throughout northern Illinois since the 1980s.

Pelicans weigh in at more than 15 pounds as compared to 12 pounds for a Canada goose and boast a wingspan of 9 ft., nearly twice the 5 ft. wingspan of a Canada goose.