On 7 November 1974 John O’Connell and I observed a Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) catching fish from one of the Henderson sewage ponds in Las Vegas Wash 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Henderson, Clark County, Nevada. As this was a form of behavior neither of us had observed previously in any of the Tyrannidae, we continued to study the bird until it ceased foraging activity.
Conditions for observation were excellent. The sky was clear, the sun was behind us, and there was no wind. We observed the bird for about 20 minutes at a distance of about 50 m.