Fine-Feathered Tourist: Rare Bird Crashes Las Vegas Water Show

The fly visitor to Lake Bellagio is “one of the 10 rarest birds that regularly breed on the mainland U.S.,” according to the National Park Service.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A visit from a rare, fine-feathered tourist on the Las Vegas Strip interrupted a hotel-casino’s prominent water show before wildlife biologists captured the yellow-billed loon and relocated it Wednesday, unharmed, to an unspecified remote location where they expect it to resume its migratory trek north.

The Bellagio said in a social media post Tuesday that it paused its fountains after the loon “found comfort on Las Vegas’ own Lake Bellagio.”

On Wednesday, the bird was removed by the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the resort’s music and choreographed water-spray show resumed in the afternoon, MGM Resorts International spokesperson Brian Ahern said.

The yellow-billed loon is an international species of concern that is considered to be “one of the 10 rarest birds that regularly breed on the mainland U.S.,” according to the National Park Service.

Initially, the fountain shows were paused while officials figured out how to proceed, Ahern said.