Parakeet Auklet

First sighted at 6:10 P.M. at north end of East Canyon Reservoir in the last small finger bay prior to dock area, which lies just east of the dam.  The bird was swimming approximately 100 feet from shore and 150 feet north of the white ball "no wake" marker.  I first observed the bird in excellent light for 35 minutes with 8 1/2 x 44 binoculars, at which time a speedboat caused the bird to fly and land several hundred feet out into the reservoir toward the direction of the dam.  The bird returned to approximately the same area some 40 minutes later, swimming and diving in the company of a winter-plumaged Eared Grebe and two Common Loons.

The back, head an throat were all dark, with a broad white eyestripe starting from just under the unbroken white eye-ring.  The stripe extended along the face to the nape; it also had a short thin stripe above the eye.  There was some slight mottling on the very upper breast which extended to both sides.  The most outstanding mark, of course, was the somewhat rounded red bill.  In flight the bird was completely dark above and white below.