Fountains of Bellagio on Las Vegas Strip paused due to rare bird landing in water

Update: After the announcement that the bird had been safely relocated, MGM Resorts said the fountain shows would resume with a normal schedule at 3 p.m. Wednesday.

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip announced Tuesday that its fountains are paused for the time being due to one of the rarest birds in the U.S. landing in the fountains.

In a post on the platform “X,” Bellagio welcomed one of “the most exclusive guests,” the Yellow-billed Loon, to the Strip property, saying it was working with state wildlife officials to rescue the bird.

The Yellow-billed Loon is an international species of concern considered to be one of the 10 rarest birds that regularly breed in the U.S., according to the National Park Service.

Yellow-billed Loons raise their young in northern Alaska each year. Recently, scientists with the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service started monitoring the breeding population of Yellow-billed Loons across northern Alaska to document population trends and to investigate factors affecting the breeding population. This year, the species will be considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act, according to NPS.

There is no official date set for when the fountains will resume at this time.

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