Formerly frequent in the French Lesser Antilles, the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis), also called Grand Gosier in certain islands, had practically disappeared from the Martinican coasts due to over-intensive hunting, in particular for the virtues of its fat against rheumatism, sciatica, and arthritis. It has been encountered again for a few years in Grand-Rivière and Le Carbet as well as in the marina of Le François, by the sea, near the coastal waters where it feeds. Protected since 1989, it does not, however, nest in Martinique and is the only species of the Pelecanidae family, which has eight, present on the island.