Learning about condors and the natural world in and of itself is a contribution. Knowledge of how biological systems work and the life cycles of animals and plants helps guide our society’s ability to make good land management decisions. Help from Home Be a citizen scientist and help condor recovery right from home. Go to…
Condors can be tagged on either wing. In the early days of the California Condor Recovery Program, every condor was tagged on both wings. Now condors in southern California just wear one wing tag and it can be on either side. The tags are attached by piercing the patagium of the wing. When wearing transmitters…
The numbers on the wing tags represent the last one or two digits of the bird’s studbook number. Male condor #509 wears a black tag with the number “9” and female #111 wears a red tag with the number “11”. Be sure to let us know if you see any unusual tagged condors visiting the…
All condors are tagged with at least one distinct color/number wing-mounted tags for identification in the field. Some condors are also fitted with wing-mounted GPS transmitters, like male #509, which biologists use to track their movements in the wild. Condors cannot be given traditional bird bands because they show a thermoregulatory behavior called urohydrosis, in…
The California Condor Recovery Program (Recovery Program) is a multi-entity effort, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, to recover the endangered California condor. Partners in condor recovery include the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Arizona Game and Fish Department, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Utah Department of…
From 1987 to 1992, no California condors flew free in the California skies. In 1992 captive-bred condors were released into the wild at Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge north of Ventura, with additional captive-reared birds added to the flock each year thereafter.
Yes, California condors are protected under the Endangered Species Act and listed as federally endangered. They are one of the rarest birds in the world. In 1982, there were only 22 California condors in the world. That year, these remaining condors were placed into a captive breeding program thus beginning an an intensive recovery program…
Adult California condors have a distinctive pink head and neck that is bare of feathers. That bare head is perfectly designed to keep rotting food from sticking to it as the birds eat. The skin on an adult condor’s head can also express some emotions. It turns a deep red-pink during courtship or when the…
Condors are usually silent (they lack vocal chords), but can issue a variety of hisses and snorts particularly when defending nest sites. Newborn chicks hiss, wheeze, and grunt at adults.
Condors do not have a strong sense of smell.