Just before 4:00PM today January 8th I found a 1st-winter Black-legged Kitt= iwake at the north end of Lac Qui Parle Lake, Lac Qui Parle and Swift cou= nties. The bird was first seen from Hwy119 while it was swimming on the o= pen water along the twin bridges. It eventually took flight and went fart= her out and began walking on the ice and scavenged for scraps around the = icefishing shacks on the lake. Around 4:40PM I lost track of the bird and= could not relocate it by the time it started snowing, but it could easil= y still be in the area or at one of the nearby areas of open water (Marsh= Lake Dam and several spots farther south on LQP Lake.) The kittiwake mus= t have just arrived at the location because I=E2=80=99ve driven by this s= pot every day for the last week and it was not present.
Bill J. Unzen Lac Qui Parle County.
