pelican

The pelican is often associated with parenthood and “devoted and self sacrificing charity”. The Symbolisms of Heraldry, W. Cecil Wade, George Redway, London, 1898 P77-78 It is almost always shown with its young in their nest (in its piety) or pricking its breast in readiness to feed its young with its own blood (vulning herself. A Glossary of Terms used in British Heraldry, J.H. Parker, Oxford, 1894, Entry:Pelican