California Condors Reintroduction http animals nationalgeographic comanimalsbirdscaliforniacondor By

California Condors Reintroduction http: //animals. nationalgeographic. com/animals/birds/california-condor/ By: Kaitlyn Kunce

California Condor Gymnogyps californianus -Largest flying bird in North America -Wing Span: Nearly 10 ft tip to tip -Use air currents to soar -Weight: 18 -31 lbs Opportunistic scavengers: feast on carcasses of large mammals http: //www. bigsurcalifornia. org/condors. html

-Long-lived species -Breeding age is between 6 -8 years old -Mate for life -Female only lays one egg every two years -Egg is about 5 inches long, and 10 ounces http: //www. ventanaws. org/species_condors/ -56 days of incubation -Young fledge at 5 -6 months of age -Cavity-nesting birds: do not build nests California Condor egg in nest cave. Photo by Brandt

-Mostly black feathers -Heads and neck are mostly bare -Their necks and heads turn pink when they’re excited -Also can be shades of red, orange, yellow, and light blue California Condors adult -photo by Joe Burnett

1967: Placed on the Federal Endangered Species Act 1980: The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service began a captive breeding program with the Los Angeles Zoo, and the San Diego Wild Animal Park 1982: 21 -23 birds in California 1987: Decision was made to bring all the remaining condors into captivity 1992: January, began releasing condors into the wild in California 1996: December, began releasing condors into the wild in Arizona Since then, program personnel soft-released roughly 6 -10 birds per year. 2011: Total Population 369 with 192 in the wild and 177 in captivity

California Condor lead poisoning. Photo by Noel Snyder -Loss of habitat -Power lines -Shootings -Lead poisoning Ingest lead from spent ammunition found in animal carcasses and gut piles.

The Recovery Goals of the California Condor Program: -Maintenance of at least 2 wild population -Maintenance of at one captive population -Each population must =contain 150 individuals and 15 breeding pairs =be reproductively self sustaining =have a positive population growth rate -Wild populations must =be separated and non-interacting =contain descendants from each of the 14 founders Future Status of the Arizona Program: 1. Continue daily monitoring of condors. 2. Addition of more satellite and GPS transmitters. 3. Expansion of the 10(j) area. 4. Establish a medical treatment facility near the release site. 5. Continued education programs on condor reintroduction.

http: //www. ventanaws. org/species_condors/adopt_a_condor. htm

References: National Geographic. 1996 -2012. California Condors. Retrieved from http: //animals. nationalgeographic. com/animals/birds/ california-condor/ National Parks Conservation Association. California Condor. Retrieved from http: //www. npca. org/protecting-ourparks/wildlife_facts/condor. html Sullivan, Kathy. 2009. California Condor Recovery. Retrieved from http: //www. azgfd. gov/w_c/california_con dor. shtml Ventana Wildlife Society. 2009. California Condor Reintroduction. Retrieved from http: //www. ventanaws. org/species_condors/