Roseate Spoonbill Makes Debut in Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Hundreds of bird-watchers recently flocked to a Twin Cities dock for a look at a roseate spoonbill making its first verifiable debut in Minnesota.

The roseate spoonbill was spotted in Bloomington Sunday near the Old Cedar Avenue Bridge over the Minnesota River. The bird lifted off to the northeast at about 8 p.m. Sunday and additional sightings haven't yet been logged.

Birder Jim Williams says he and his fellow bird-watchers are almost certain this specific roseate spoonbill was also spotted and verified earlier this month in Illinois, about 60 miles (96 kilometers) east of the Mississippi River near St. Louis, and in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The pinkish and rose-colored bird with a wide and flat bill is native to the Gulf Coast along the shores of Texas, Louisiana and Florida.