Location via proxy:   [ UP ]  
[Report a bug]   [Manage cookies]                
Wikipedia

California condor

The California condor (Gymnogyps californianus) is a New World vulture and the largest North American land bird. It became extinct in the wild in 1987 when all remaining wild individuals were captured, but has since been reintroduced to northern Arizona and southern Utah (including the Grand Canyon area and Zion National Park), the coastal mountains of California, and northern Baja California in Mexico. It is the only surviving member of the genus Gymnogyps, although four extinct members of the genus are also known. The species is listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as Critically Endangered, and similarly considered Critically Imperiled by NatureServe.[5]

California condor
Temporal range: 2.5–0 Ma
↓
Early Pleistocene – Holocene
Condor #534 soaring over the Grand Canyon, U.S.
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Cathartidae
Genus: Gymnogyps
Species:
G. californianus
Binomial name
Gymnogyps californianus
(Shaw, 1797)
Range map of California condor:
  Extant (resident)
  Possibly extinct
Synonyms

Genus-level:

  • Antillovultur Arredondo, 1971
  • Pseudogryphus Ridgway, 1874[3]

Species-level:

  • Vultur californianus Shaw, 1797[4]

The plumage is black with patches of white on the underside of the wings; the head is largely bald, with skin color ranging from gray on young birds to yellow and bright orange on breeding adults. Its 3.0 m (9.8 ft) wingspan is the widest of any North American bird, and its weight of up to 12 kg (26 lb) nearly equals that of the trumpeter swan, the heaviest among native North American bird species. The condor is a scavenger and eats large amounts of carrion. It is one of the world's longest-living birds, with a lifespan of up to 60 years.[6]

Condor numbers dramatically declined in the 20th century due to agricultural chemicals (DDT), poaching, lead poisoning, and habitat destruction.[7] A conservation plan put in place by the United States government led to the capture of all the remaining wild condors by 1987, with a total population of 27 individuals.[8] These surviving birds were bred at the San Diego Wild Animal Park and the Los Angeles Zoo. Numbers rose through captive breeding, and beginning in 1991, condors were reintroduced into the wild. Since then, their population has grown, but the California condor remains one of the world's rarest bird species. By 31 December 2023, the Fish and Wildlife Service had updated the total world population of 561.[9] A May 2024 population estimate of 561 is provided by the non-profit Ventana Wildlife Society on their website.[10] The condor is a significant bird to many Californian Native American groups and plays an important role in several of their traditional myths.[11]

Taxonomy

edit
 
Frederick Polydore Nodder's illustration accompanying George Shaw's 1797 species description

The California condor was described by English naturalist George Shaw in 1797 as Vultur californianus; Archibald Menzies collected the type specimen "from the coast of California" during the Vancouver expedition.[4] It was originally classified in the same genus as the Andean condor (V. gryphus), but, due to the Andean condor's slightly different markings, slightly longer wings, and tendency to kill small animals to eat,[12] the California condor has been placed in its own monotypic genus. The generic name Gymnogyps is derived from the Greek gymnos/γυμνος "naked" or "bare", and gyps/γυψ "vulture",[13] while the specific name californianus comes from its location in California. The word condor itself is derived from the Quechua word kuntur.[14]

 
A California condor skull

The exact taxonomic placement of the California condor and the other six species of New World vultures remains unclear.[15] Though similar in appearance and ecological roles to Old World vultures, the New World vultures evolved from a different ancestor in a different part of the world. Just how different the two are is under debate, with some earlier authorities suggesting that the New World vultures are more closely related to storks.[16] More recent authorities maintain their overall position in the order Falconiformes along with the Old World vultures[17] or place them in their own order, Cathartiformes.[18] The South American Classification Committee has removed the New World vultures from Ciconiiformes and instead placed them in Incertae sedis, but notes that a move to Falconiformes or Cathartiformes is possible.[15]

As of the 51st Supplement (2010) of the American Ornithologists' Union, the California condor is in the family Cathartidae of the order Cathartiformes.[19]

Evolutionary history

edit
 
Fossil of the extinct species Gymnogyps amplus from the La Brea Tar Pits

The genus Gymnogyps is an example of a relict distribution. During the Pleistocene Epoch, this genus was widespread across the Americas. From fossils, the Floridian Gymnogyps kofordi from the Early Pleistocene and the Peruvian Gymnogyps howardae from the Late Pleistocene have been described.[20] A condor found in Late Pleistocene deposits on Cuba was initially described as Antillovultur varonai, but has since been recognized as another member of Gymnogyps, Gymnogyps varonai. It may even have derived from a founder population of California condors.[21]

The California condor is the sole surviving member of Gymnogyps and has no accepted subspecies. However, there is a Late Pleistocene form that is sometimes regarded as a palaeosubspecies, Gymnogyps californianus amplus. Opinions are mixed, regarding the classification of the form as either a chronospecies or a separate species, Gymnogyps amplus.[22] Gymnogyps amplus occurred over much of the bird's historical range – even extending into Florida – but was larger, having about the same weight as the Andean condor. This bird also had a wider bill.[23] As the climate changed during the last ice age, the entire population became smaller until it had evolved into the Gymnogyps californianus of today,[24][25] although more recent studies by Syverson question that theory.[22]

Description

edit
 
An adult in flight. Tracking tags can be seen on both wings.

The adult California condor is a uniform black with the exception of large triangular patches or bands of white on the underside of the wings. It has gray legs and feet, an ivory-colored bill, a frill of black feathers surrounding the base of the neck, and brownish red eyes.[26] The juvenile is mostly a mottled dark brown with blackish coloration on the head. It has mottled gray instead of white on the underside of its flight feathers.[27]

The condor's head has little to no feathers, which helps keep it clean when feeding on carrion.[28] The skin of the head and neck is capable of flushing noticeably in response to emotional state.[29] The skin color varies from yellowish to a glowing reddish-orange.[26] The birds do not have true syringeal vocalizations. They can make a few hissing or grunting sounds only heard when very close.[30]

 
The upper body and head

The female condor is smaller than the male, an exception to the rule among birds of prey (the related Andean condor is another exception). Overall length ranges from 109 to 140 cm (43 to 55 in) and wingspan from 2.49 to 3 m (8 ft 2 in to 9 ft 10 in). Their weight ranges from 7 to 14.1 kg (15 to 31 lb), with estimations of average weight ranging from 8 to 9 kg (18 to 20 lb).[27][31] Wingspans of up to 3.4 m (11 ft) have been reported but no wingspan over 3.05 m (10.0 ft) has been verified.[32] Most measurements are from birds raised in captivity, so it is difficult to determine if major differences exist between wild and captive condors.

California condors have the largest wingspan of any North American bird. They are surpassed in both body length and weight only by the trumpeter swan and the introduced mute swan. The American white pelican and whooping crane also have longer bodies than the condor. Condors are so large that they can be mistaken for a small, distant airplane, which possibly occurs more often than that they are mistaken for other bird species.[33]

The middle toe of the California condor's foot is greatly elongated, and the hind toe is only slightly developed. The talons of all the toes are straight and blunt and are thus more adapted to walking than gripping. This is more similar to their supposed relatives the storks[34][35] than to birds of prey and Old World vultures, which use their feet as weapons or organs of prehension.

Historic range

edit
 
California oak savanna on the east flank of Sonoma Mountain

At the time of human settlement of the Americas, the California condor was widespread across North America; condor bones from the late Pleistocene have been found at the Cutler Fossil Site in southern Florida.[36] However, at the end of the last glacial period came the extinction of the megafauna that led to a subsequent reduction in range and population. Five hundred years ago, the California condor roamed across the American Southwest and West Coast. Faunal remains of condors have been found documented in Arizona,[37] Nevada,[38] New Mexico,[39][40] and Texas.[41] The Lewis and Clark Expedition of the early 19th century reported on their sighting and shooting of California condors near the mouth of the Columbia River.[42][43]

In the 1970s, two Condor Observation Sites were established in the Santa Clara River Valley to host hopeful birders interested in the endangered species: one about 15 miles north of Fillmore, California, near the Sespe Wildlife Area of Los Padres National Forest, and one atop Mount Pinos, "accessible from a dirt road off the highway in from Gorman".[44]

Habitat

edit

The California condor lives in rocky shrubland, coniferous forest, and oak savanna.[1] They are often found near cliffs or large trees, which they use as nesting sites. Individual birds have a huge range and have been known to travel up to 250 km (160 mi) in search of carrion.

There are two sanctuaries chosen because of their prime condor nesting habitat: the Sisquoc Condor Sanctuary in the San Rafael Wilderness[45] and the Sespe Condor Sanctuary in the Los Padres National Forest.

The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 expanded existing wilderness by 34,200 hectares (84,400 acres) and designated 127,900 hectares (316,050 acres) of new wilderness that provide habitat for the condor in the Los Padres.

Ecology and behavior

edit
 
Preening condors

The California condor's large flight muscles are not anchored by a correspondingly large sternum, which restricts them to being primarily soarers. The birds flap their wings when taking off from the ground, but after attaining a moderate elevation they largely glide, sometimes going for miles without a single flap of their wings. They have been known to fly up to speeds of 90 km/h (56 mph) and as high as 4,600 m (15,100 ft).[46] They prefer to roost on high perches from which they can launch without any major wing-flapping effort. Often, these birds are seen soaring near rock cliffs, using thermals to aid them in keeping aloft.[47]

The California condor has a long life span, reaching up to 60 years.[6][7] If it survives to adulthood, the condor has few natural threats other than humans.[48] Because they lack a syrinx, their vocal display is limited to grunts and hisses.[29] Condors bathe frequently and can spend hours a day preening their feathers.[46] Condors also perform urohidrosis, or defecate on their legs, to reduce their body temperature.[29] There is a well-developed social structure within large groups of condors, with competition to determine a pecking order decided by body language, competitive play behavior, and a variety of hisses and grunts. This social hierarchy is displayed especially when the birds feed, with the dominant birds eating before the younger ones.[49]

Breeding

edit
 
An adult with a 30-day-old chick in a cave nest near the Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge, California, U.S.

Condors begin to look for a mate when they reach sexual maturity at the age of 6.[46] To attract a prospective mate, the male condor performs a display, in which the male turns his head red and puffs out his neck feathers. He then spreads his wings and slowly approaches the female. If the female lowers her head to accept the male, the condors become mates for life.[49] The pair makes a simple nest in caves or on cliff clefts, especially ones with nearby roosting trees and open spaces for landing. A mated female lays one bluish-white egg every other year. Eggs are laid as early as January to as late as April.[50] The egg weighs about 280 grams (10 oz) and measures from 90 to 120 mm (3.5 to 4.7 in) in length and about 67 mm (2.6 in) in width. If the chick or egg is lost or removed, the parents "double clutch", or lay another egg to take the lost one's place. Researchers and breeders take advantage of this behavior to double the reproductive rate by taking the first egg away for puppet-rearing; this induces the parents to lay a second (or even third) egg, which the condors are sometimes allowed to raise.[51][52]

The eggs hatch after 53 to 60 days of incubation by both parents. Chicks are born with their eyes open and sometimes can take up to a week to leave the shell completely.[29] The young are covered with a grayish down until they are almost as large as their parents. They are able to fly after 5 to 6 months, but continue to roost and forage with their parents until they are in their second year, at which point the parents typically turn their energies to a new nest.[26] Ravens are the main predatory threat to condor eggs, while golden eagles and bears are potential predators of condor offspring.

In 2021, the San Diego Zoo reported having had two unfertilized eggs hatch within its breeding program in 2001 and 2009, producing male young by parthenogenesis as indicated by genetic studies. The mothers had been housed with males and had mated before, but the offspring lacked markers of male paternity and showed all-maternal inheritance, suggesting the specific mechanism of parthenogenesis involved automixis, gametic fusion, or endomitosis.[53][54][55] Earlier evidence of similar parthenogenesis in birds found that among the known examples the embryos died before hatching, unlike these condor chicks. Neither chick lived to sexual maturity, preventing data collection on their reproductive potential.[56]

In July 2024, the LA Zoo reported that a record-setting 17 California condor chicks hatched during the year's breeding season, crediting the surge on novel breeding and rearing techniques developed by their condor team. The technique involves introducing 2 to 3 chicks to a single surrogate mature condor who raises them. Due to the endangered status of the California condor, all 17 chicks are to be released into the wild. [57]

Feeding

edit
 
Juveniles feeding
See also: Evolutionary anachronism

Wild condors maintain a large home range, often traveling 250 km (160 mi) a day in search of carrion.[58] It is thought that in the early days of its existence as a species, the California condor lived off the carcasses of the Pleistocene megafauna, which are largely extinct in North America. They still prefer to feast on large, terrestrial mammalian carcasses such as deer, goats, sheep, donkeys, horses, pigs, cougars, bears, or cattle. Alternatively, they may feed on the bodies of smaller mammals such as rabbits, squirrels, and coyotes, aquatic mammals such as whales and California sea lions, or salmon.[59] Bird and reptile carcasses are rarely eaten. Condors prefer fresh kills, but they also eat decayed food when necessary.[59] Since they do not have a sense of smell,[60] they spot these corpses by looking for other scavengers, like eagles and smaller vultures, the latter of which cannot rip through the tougher hides of these larger animals with the efficiency of the larger condor. They can usually intimidate other scavengers away from the carcass, with the exception of bears, which will ignore them, and golden eagles, which will fight a condor over a kill or a carcass.[26] In the wild they are intermittent eaters, often going for between a few days to two weeks without eating,[58] then gorging themselves on 1–1.5 kilograms (2.2–3.3 lb) of meat at once.

Conservation

edit
 
A juvenile in the Grand Canyon, with its numbered tag prominent.

The California condor conservation project may be one of the most expensive species conservation projects in United States history,[61] costing over $35 million, including $20 million in federal and state funding, since World War II.[62] As of 2007, the annual cost for the condor conservation program was around $2.0 million per year.[62] Successful reintroduction of captive-bred condors into the wild has become a multi-step and complex process, fraught with the need to periodically recapture the birds to test for lead poisoning and sometimes the necessity for lead removal by chelation.[63]

Recovery plan

edit
 
A condor chick being fed by a condor head feeding puppet

As the condor's population continued to decline, discussion began about starting a captive breeding program for the birds. Opponents to this plan argued that the condors had the right to freedom and that capturing all of the condors would change the species' habits forever, and that the cost was too great.[64] The project received the approval of the United States government, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service established the California Condor Recovery Program in 1979.[65] The capture of the remaining wild condors was completed on Easter Sunday 1987, when AC-9, the last wild condor, was captured.[66] At that point, there were only 22 surviving condors, all of them in captivity.[67] The goal of the California Condor Recovery Plan was to establish two geographically separate populations, one in California and the other in Arizona, each with 150 birds and at least 15 breeding pairs.

The study and capture of the remaining California condors was made possible through the efforts of Jan Hamber, an ornithologist with the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. Hamber personally captured AC-9,[68] the final wild California condor, and her dedication to the bird's conservation led her to compile decades of field notes into the Condor Archives, a searchable database focused on condor biology and conservation.[68]

The captive breeding program, led by the San Diego Wild Animal Park and Los Angeles Zoo,[69] and with other participating zoos around the country, including the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden, got off to a slow start due to the condor's mating habits. However, utilizing the bird's ability to double clutch, biologists began removing the first egg from the nest and raising it with puppets, allowing the parents to lay another egg.

Aside from breeding programs, the Condor Recovery Center at Oakland Zoo treats condors that are ill from lead poisoning.[70]

 
The California condor once numbered only 22 birds, but conservation measures have raised that number to over 500 today.

Reintroduction to the wild

edit

In 1988, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service began a reintroduction experiment involving the release of captive Andean condors into the wild in California. Only females were released, to eliminate the possibility of accidentally introducing a South American species into the United States. The experiment was a success, and all the Andean condors were recaptured and re-released in South America.[46] California condors were released in 1991 and 1992 in California at Big Sur, Pinnacles National Park and Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge and in 1996 at the Vermilion Cliffs release site in Arizona near the Grand Canyon.[27] The Fish and Wildlife Service designated the Arizona condors as an experimental, nonessential animal so they would not affect land regulations or development as ranchers were concerned they could be charged with an offense if any birds were injured on their property after the release.[71] Though the birth rate remains low in the wild, their numbers are increasing steadily through regular releases of captive-reared adolescents.[72]

 
A USFWS sign at Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge showing the site's association with the California Condor Recovery Program

Obstacles to recovery

edit

In modern times, numerous causes have contributed to the California condor's decline, both before and after recovery efforts began. For example, between 1992 and 2013, 237 condor deaths occurred in the wild population.[73] The leading cause of mortality in condor nestlings is the ingestion of trash that is fed to them by their parents.[74] Among juveniles and adults, lead poisoning (from eating animal carcasses containing lead shot) is the leading cause of death.[75][73]

Significant past damage to the condor population has also been attributed to poaching,[76] DDT poisoning,[77][78] electric power lines, egg collecting, and habitat destruction. During the California Gold Rush, some condors were even kept as pets.[79]

Reproduction

edit

Its low clutch size (one young per nest) and late age of sexual maturity (≈6 years) make the bird vulnerable to artificial population decline.

Inbreeding may be causing increased incidence of fatal chondrodystrophic dwarfism in wild condors, as well as a syndrome presenting with 14 rather than the typical 12 tail feathers.[80] A 2021 study found a surprising degree of genomic diversity in condors, however.[81] Such data allow refinement to conservation strategies, helping mitigate the effects of inbreeding. One of the study's authors hopes to complete genomic analysis of all 22 individuals from which all living condors descend.[80]

Lead poisoning

edit

Lead poisoning is a significant threat to condors and other avian and terrestrial scavengers[82][83] Fragmented lead ammunition in large game waste is highly problematic for condors due to their extremely strong digestive juices.[84] Blood-lead analysis of wild condors showed lead isotope signature matches to ammunition purchased by researchers near the range of the affected condors.[84][85] In California, the Ridley-Tree Condor Preservation Act went into effect July 1, 2008, requiring that hunters use non-lead ammunition when hunting in the condor's range.[86] Blood lead levels in golden eagles as well as turkey vultures has declined with the implementation of the Ridley-Tree Condor Preservation Act, demonstrating that the legislation has helped reduce other species' lead exposures aside from the California condor.[87][88] There is no comparable anti-lead-bullet legislation in the other states in which the condor resides.

In 2015, Bruce Rideout, director of the wildlife disease laboratories for San Diego Zoo Global, indicated that lead poisoning is the most common cause of death for juvenile and adult condors in the wild. Among wild deaths with known causes between 1992 and 2013, over 60% (excluding chicks and fledglings) have been as a result of lead poisoning.[73] Due to condors' long lifespan (over 50 years) and relatively late age of sexual maturity (≈6 years), and small clutch size in the wild (one egg every year or two), the population is very poorly suited to withstand the neurotoxic effects of lead exposure."[73]

According to epidemiologist Terra Kelly, until all natural food sources are free from lead-based ammunition, "lead poisoning will threaten recovery of naturally sustaining populations of condors in the wild."[73] While researchers and veterinarians involved in the condor recovery program note that hunters who use lead-free ammunition actually provide critical sources of food for condors and other scavengers, they caution that using lead ammunition presents a serious and preventable threat to condors and other wildlife.[73][89][90]

Other premature death

edit

Premature condor death may also occur due to contact with golden eagles, whose talons enable defense of carrion against condors. Evidence from condor release efforts also suggests golden eagles may occasionally kill condors.[91][92]

Collision with power lines can also result in condor death. Since 1994, captive-bred California condors have been trained to avoid power lines and people. Since the implementation of this aversion conditioning program, the number of condor deaths due to power lines has greatly decreased.[93]

Trash ingestion

edit

"Being vultures, condors not only eat dead animals but they also have been observed eating small pieces of bone [which is especially crucial during the egg-laying period]. Although extremely intelligent, condors can’t always tell the difference between small pieces of trash and pieces of bone," according to Tim Hauck, Project Director for the California Condor Reintroduction Program.[94] Indigestible trash can cause impaction, starvation, and death if affected condors do not receive timely medical intervention. Parent birds may unintentionally feed microtrash to nestlings,[95] which some research has shown to be the leading cause of death among wild condor nestlings.[74]

Disease

edit

In 2023, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) infected members of the Utah-Arizona flock, killing 21 condors (including 13 individuals from 8 breeding pairs).[96][97] Other individuals were released back into the wild following medical treatment. Sixteen condors were treated as part of a vaccine trial.[98] As of 2 February 2024, 94 condors had received at least the first of two doses of the vaccine.[99]

During routine winter trapping intended to assess lead levels, blood samples collected from 21 condors were tested for HPAI antibodies. About half the samples showed the presence of antibodies to the H5N1 strain of HPAI, indicating these birds were exposed to the virus and survived naturally.

Population growth

edit

Nesting milestones have been reached by the reintroduced condors. In 2003, the first nestling fledged in the wild since 1981.[100] In March 2006, a pair of California condors, released by Ventana Wildlife Society, attempted to nest in a hollow tree near Big Sur, California. This was the first time in more than 100 years that a pair of California condors had been seen nesting in Northern California.[101]

In October 2010, the wild condor population reached 100 individuals in its namesake state of California, plus 73 wild condors in Arizona.[72] In November 2011, there were 394 living individuals, 205 of them in the wild[6][7] and the rest in the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, the Santa Barbara Zoo, the Los Angeles Zoo, the Oregon Zoo, and the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho. In May 2012, the number of living individuals had reached 405, with 179 living in captivity.[102] By June 2014, the condor population had reached 439: 225 in the wild and 214 in captivity.[103] Official statistics from the December 2016 USFWS recorded an overall population of 446, of which 276 are wild and 170 are captive.[104] A key milestone was reached in 2015 when more condors were born in the wild than died.[105]

Reintroduction to Mexico

edit

As the Recovery Program achieved milestones, a fifth active release site in Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park, Baja California, Mexico, was added to the three release sites in California and the release site in Arizona.[106][107] In early 2007, a California condor laid an egg in Mexico for the first time since at least the 1930s.[108]

In June 2016, three chicks that were born in Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico City, were flown to Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park, Baja California, Mexico.[109] In the spring of 2009, a second wild chick was born in the Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park and was named Inyaa ("Sun" in the Kiliwa language) by local environmentalists.[110]

Expanded range

edit
 
Pinnacles National Park, a release site

In 2014, Condor #597, also known as "Lupine", was spotted near Pescadero, a coastal community south of San Francisco.[111] Lupine had been routinely seen at Pinnacles National Park after having been released into the wild at Big Sur the previous year. Younger birds of the central California population are seeking to expand their territory, which could mean that a new range expansion is possible for the more than 60 condors flying free in central California.[112] Also in 2014 the first successful breeding in Utah was reported. A pair of condors that had been released in Arizona, nested in Zion National Park and the hatching of one chick was confirmed.[113] The 1,000th chick since recovery efforts began hatched in Zion in May 2019.[114] The California condor was seen for the first time in nearly 50 years in Sequoia National Park in late May 2020.[115]

As part of an effort headed by the Yurok tribe to reintroduce the condor (Yurok name 'prey-go-neesh') to the coastal redwoods of northern California, birds hatched at the Oregon Zoo and the World Center for Birds of Prey were released at Redwood National Park in 2022.[116][117] The first condor brought to the Yurok site was called Paaytoqin from the Nez Perce language meaning 'Come back'; he is also known as 'Mentor' or #736.[118] He was brought to the site, but not released, to help instruct the younger condors how to behave "because of his calm nature and good disposition".[118] Mentor condors are used to serve as a role model and establish a social hierarchy within a flock as an essential part of its survival.[119]

The first condor to be released was called Poy’-we-son (Yurok for "the one who goes ahead"), followed by Nes-kwe-chokw ("He returns"), Ney-gem’ ‘Ne-chweenkah’ ("She carries our prayers") and ‘Hlow Hoo-let’ ("At last I (or we) fly!").[118] The youngsters felt at home with one another having lived together at other facilities.[119] As of March 2024 11 birds (4 females and 7 males) have been successfully introduced, with another 5 or more being released this year.[120] An article in the North Coast Journal from November 2023 describes the 11 birds with their names and translations.[121]

Condor Watch

edit
 
Zooniverse icon for Condor Watch

A crowdsourcing project called Condor Watch (CW) was started on April 14, 2014, and ended in 2020.[122][123] Hosted by the web portal Zooniverse, volunteers were asked to examine motion-capture images of California condors associated with release sites managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service and Ventana Wildlife Society.[124] The tasks on the website included identifying tagged condors and marking the distance to feeding sources such as animal carcasses. Biologists can then use this data to deduce which birds are at risk of lead poisoning.

Condor Watch enabled volunteers, or citizen scientists, to participate in active research. The project had up 175,000 images to view and assess far more than the team could hope to view on their own.[123] Lead scientist Myra Finkelstein believes volunteering is fun because it allows enthusiasts to track the "biographies" of individual condors. Citizen science has long been used in ornithology, for instance in the Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count, which began in 1900 and the breeding bird survey which began in 1966. McCaffrey (2005) believes this approach not only directly benefits ongoing projects, but will also help train aspiring ornithologists.[125]

Relationship with humans

edit
 
Condor on California's state quarter

Throughout its historic range, the California condor has been a popular subject of mythology and an important symbol to Native Americans. Unusually,[126] this bird takes on different roles in the storytelling of the different tribes.

The Wiyot tribe of California say that the condor recreated mankind after Above Old Man wiped humanity out with a flood.[127] However, other tribes, such as California's Mono, view the condor as a destroyer, not a creator; they say that Condor seized humans, cut off their heads, and drained their blood so that it would flood Ground Squirrel's home. Condor then seized Ground Squirrel after he fled, but Ground Squirrel managed to cut off Condor's head when Condor paused to take a drink of the blood.[128] According to the Yokuts people, the condor sometimes ate the moon, causing the lunar cycle, and his wings caused eclipses.[129] The Chumash tribe of Southern California tell that the condor was once a white bird, but it turned black when it flew too close to a fire.[129]

Condor bones have been found in Native American graves,[130] as have condor feather headdresses. Cave paintings of condors have also been discovered.[131] Some tribes ritually killed condors to make ceremonial clothing out of their feathers.[132] Shamans then danced while wearing these to reach the upper and lower spiritual worlds.[citation needed] Whenever a Shaman died, his clothes were said to be cursed,[133] so new clothing had to be made for his successor.

Some researchers such as Snyder believe that this practice of making ceremonial clothing contributed to the condor's decline, writing that California Indians killed up to 700 condors each year.[133][134] Snyder continues that this figure of 700 is "no doubt an unrealistically high estimate", writing that any estimate "would remain impressively high even if divided by 10".[134] A few tribes were known to have killed condors such as the Miwok, the Patwin, the Luiseño and the Pomo but how many is not known and difficult to judge.[135][136][137][138] Using available information, Wilbur writes that "a pre-European loss of condors to Indians might not have exceeded a dozen [12] or so annually."[139] Wilbur concludes that Indians might have contributed to the decline of California condors, "but their impact was minor except in highly localized situations."[139]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b BirdLife International (2020). "Gymnogyps californianus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T22697636A181151405. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22697636A181151405.en. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  2. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Archived from the original on February 4, 2010. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Baird, S. F.; Brewer, T. M.; Ridgway, R. (1874). "Genus Pseudogryphus, Ridgway". A History of North American Birds. Vol. 3. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company. pp. 338–343. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved October 31, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Shaw, George (1797). "Vultur californianus The Californian Vulture". The Naturalist's Miscellany. Vol. 9. Pl. 301. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved October 31, 2017.
  5. ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c "Once nearly extinct, the California condor nears new milestones". CNN. April 27, 2011. Archived from the original on August 4, 2018. Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  7. ^ a b c "San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: California Condor". The Zoological Society of San Diego's Center for Conservation and Research for Endangered Species. Archived from the original on August 3, 2003. Retrieved April 18, 2012.
  8. ^ "Last Wild California Condor Capture for Breeding Program" (PDF). U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (press release). Archived (PDF) from the original on August 18, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2009.
  9. ^ "World CA Condor Update – 2023 Population Status" (PDF). National Park Service. December 31, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  10. ^ "Condor Status". Ventana Wildlife Society. May 19, 2024. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  11. ^ Foster, J.W (2024). "Wings of the Spirit: The Place of the California Condor Among Native Peoples of the Californias". California Department of Parks and Recreation. State of California. Retrieved April 22, 2024. It is apparent that California condors held a special place in the lives and ceremonies of California natives.
  12. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 27
  13. ^ Liddell, Henry George & Robert Scott (1980). A Greek-English Lexicon (Abridged ed.). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-910207-5.
  14. ^ Simpson, J.; Weiner, E., eds. (1989). "Raven". Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-861186-8.
  15. ^ a b Remsen, J. V. Jr.; C. D. Cadena; A. Jaramillo; M. Nores; J. F. Pacheco; M. B. Robbins; T. S. Schulenberg; F. G. Stiles; D. F. Stotz & K. J. Zimmer. 2007. A Classification of the Bird Species of South America. Archived March 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine South American Classification Committee. Retrieved on October 15, 2007
  16. ^ Sibley, Charles G. and Monroe, Burt L. 1990. Distribution and Taxonomy of the Birds of the World Archived July 17, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-04969-2. Accessed April 11, 2007.
  17. ^ Sibley, Charles G., and Ahlquist, Jon E. 1991. Phylogeny and Classification of Birds: A Study in Molecular Evolution Archived October 13, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-04085-7. Accessed April 11, 2007.
  18. ^ Ericson, Per G. P.; Anderson, Cajsa L.; Britton, Tom; Elzanowski, Andrzej; Johansson, Ulf S.; Kallersjö, Mari; Ohlson, Jan I.; Parsons, Thomas J.; Zuccon, Dario; Mayr, Gerald (2006). "Diversification of Neoaves: integration of molecular sequence data and fossils" (PDF). Biology Letters. 2 (4): 1–5. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2006.0523. PMC 1834003. PMID 17148284. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 8, 2006. Electronic Supplementary Material Archived August 6, 2017, at the Wayback Machine (PDF)
  19. ^ "AOS Checklist of North and Middle American Birds". Archived from the original on December 7, 2012. Retrieved April 1, 2017.
  20. ^ "The Birds of North America Online: California Condor". Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 2003. Archived from the original on June 18, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  21. ^ Suárez, W.; Emslie, S.D. (2003). "New fossil material with a redescription of the extinct condor Gymnogyps varonai (Arredondo, 1971) from the Quaternary of Cuba (Aves: Vulturidae)" (PDF). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 116 (1): 29–37. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
  22. ^ a b V.J. Syverson (2007). "Evolutionary Patterns in Pleistocene to Recent California Condors". Geological Society of America. 39 (6). Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
  23. ^ Fisher, Harvey L. (1944). "The skulls of the Cathartid vultures" (PDF). Condor. 46 (6): 272–296. doi:10.2307/1364013. JSTOR 1364013. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  24. ^ Howard, Hildegarde (1947). "A preliminary survey of trends in avian evolution from Pleistocene to recent time" (PDF). Condor. 49 (1): 10–13. doi:10.2307/1364422. JSTOR 1364422. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 25, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  25. ^ Howard, Hildegarde (1962). "Bird Remains from a Prehistoric Cave Deposit in Grant County, New Mexico" (PDF). Condor. 64 (3): 241–242. doi:10.2307/1365205. JSTOR 1365205. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  26. ^ a b c d "All About Birds: California Condor". Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 2003. Archived from the original on July 14, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  27. ^ a b c BirdLife International (2007) Species factsheet: California Condor Gymnogyps californianus Archived October 13, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved August 17, 2007
  28. ^ "All About Condors". National Park Service - California Condors. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  29. ^ a b c d "California Condors Cool Facts". Ventana Wildlife Society. Archived from the original on July 20, 2008. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  30. ^ Snyder, Noel; Snyder, Helen (2000). The California Condor: A Saga of Natural History & Conservation. San Diego, California: Academic Press. pp. 5. ISBN 978-0-12-654005-5.
  31. ^ Raptors of the World by Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead & Burton. Houghton Mifflin (2001), ISBN 0-618-12762-3
  32. ^ Wood, Gerald (1983). The Guinness Book of Animal Facts and Feats. Guinness Superlatives. ISBN 978-0-85112-235-9.
  33. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 1
  34. ^ Cracraft, J. et al. 2004. "Phylogenetic relationships among modern birds (Neornithes): toward an avian tree of life". pp. 468–489 in Assembling the Tree of Life (Cracraft, J. and Donoghue, M. J. eds.). Oxford University Press, New York. ISBN 0-19-517234-5.
  35. ^ Gibb, G. C.; Kardailsky, O.; Kimball, R. T.; Braun, E. L. & Penny, D. (2007). "Mitochondrial genomes and avian phylogeny: complex characters and resolvability without explosive radiations". Molecular Biology and Evolution. 24 (1): 269–280. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.106.1680. doi:10.1093/molbev/msl158. PMID 17062634.
  36. ^ Carr, Robert S. (2012). Digging Miami. Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida. p. 32. ISBN 978-0-8130-4206-0.
  37. ^ Miller, Loye (1960). "Condor Remains from Rampart Cave, Arizona" (PDF). Condor. 62 (1): 65–71. doi:10.2307/1365660. JSTOR 1365660. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  38. ^ Miller, Loye (1931). "The California Condor in Nevada" (PDF). Condor. 33 (1): 29–38. doi:10.2307/1363932. JSTOR 1363932. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  39. ^ Wetmore, Alexander (1931). "The California Condor in New Mexico" (PDF). Condor. 33 (2): 76–77. doi:10.2307/1363313. JSTOR 1363313. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  40. ^ Wetmore, Alexander (1932). "Additional Records of Birds from Cavern Deposits in New Mexico" (PDF). Condor. 34 (3): 141–142. doi:10.2307/1363542. JSTOR 1363542. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  41. ^ Wetmore, Alexander; Friedmann, Herbert (1938). "The California Condor in Texas" (PDF). Condor. 35 (1): 37–38. doi:10.2307/1363462. JSTOR 1363462. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  42. ^ Majors, Harry M. (1975). Exploring Washington. Van Winkle Publishing Co. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-918664-00-6. Archived from the original on January 2, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  43. ^ "Lewis & Clark: The Ultimate Adventure: California Condor". Time. July 8, 2002. Archived from the original on October 22, 2010.
  44. ^ Sunset Travel Guide to Southern California. Menlo Park, Calif.: Lane Publishing Co. 1974. p. 150. SBN 376-06754-3.
  45. ^ Gagnon, Dennis R. Hiking the Santa Barbara Backcountry. The Ward Ritchie Press, Pasadena, California, 1974. ISBN 0-378-03542-8
  46. ^ a b c d "California condor, (Gymnogyps californianus)". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Archived from the original on April 1, 2013. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  47. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 79
  48. ^ "San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: California Condor". Zoological Society of San Diego. Archived from the original on August 3, 2003. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  49. ^ a b "California Condor Behavior". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge. Archived from the original on April 16, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  50. ^ Snyder, Noel; Snyder, Helen (2000). The California Condor. Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-12-654005-5.
  51. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 186
  52. ^ "California Condor Reintroduction & Recovery". U.S. National Park Service. January 25, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  53. ^ Ryder, Oliver A; Thomas, Steven; Judson, Jessica Martin; Romanov, Michael N; Dandekar, Sugandha; Papp, Jeanette C; Sidak-Loftis, Lindsay C; Walker, Kelli; Stalis, Ilse H; Mace, Michael; Steiner, Cynthia C; Chemnick, Leona G (2021). "Facultative Parthenogenesis in California Condors". Journal of Heredity. 112 (7): 569–574. doi:10.1093/jhered/esab052. PMC 8683835. PMID 34718632. (Advance Access publication, October 28, 2021.)
  54. ^ Bittel, Jason (October 28, 2021). "Endangered birds experience 'virgin birth,' a first for the species". National Geographic. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  55. ^ San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (October 28, 2021). "San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Conservation Scientists Report First Confirmed Hatchings of Two California Condor Chicks from Unfertilized Eggs". stories.sandiegozoo.org. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  56. ^ Wilcox, Christie, Flying Solo: Parthenogenesis Discovered in California Condors Archived November 1, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Scientist, October 29, 2021
  57. ^ Murphy Marcos, Coral (July 25, 2024). "'Nature's clean-up crew': record-setting 17 condor chicks hatch at LA Zoo". The Guardian.
  58. ^ a b "California Condor Life History". Ventana Wildlife Society. Archived from the original on July 30, 2007. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  59. ^ a b "Gymnogyps californianus (California condor)". Animal Diversity Web. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  60. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 58
  61. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 7
  62. ^ a b "Frequently Asked Questions". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge. Archived from the original on August 8, 2007. Retrieved August 23, 2007.
  63. ^ Levy, Sharon (June 22, 2022). "How the Yurok Tribe Is Bringing Back the California Condor". Undark Magazine.
  64. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 13
  65. ^ "California Condor Recovery Program". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. November 3, 2023. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  66. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 24
  67. ^ "California Condor - San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants". animals.sandiegozoo.org. Archived from the original on September 28, 2014. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  68. ^ a b "This Bird Lives Because She Never Quit". Audubon. September 29, 2020. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
  69. ^ Reyes-Velarde, Alejandra (May 14, 2019). "These condor chicks have a better chance in the wild, thanks to the L.A. Zoo". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
  70. ^ Kapnik, Alyssa. "Program To Save The California Condor From Extinction Is Making Strides". KALW. Archived from the original on August 7, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  71. ^ Kopytoff, Verne G. (December 10, 1996). "Majestic Species' Fate May Ride on Wings Of 6 Freed Condors". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  72. ^ a b Weise, Elizabeth (October 7, 2010). "Condor population reaches 100 in California". USA Today. Archived from the original on June 28, 2017. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
  73. ^ a b c d e f Dawn Starin (January 21, 2015). "Condors or lead ammunition? We can't have both". The Ecologist. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  74. ^ a b Rideout, BA; Stalis, I; Papendick, R; Pessier, A; Puschner, B; Finkelstein, ME; Smith, DR; Johnson, M; Mace, M; Stroud, R; Brandt, J; Burnett, J; Parish, C; Petterson, J; Witte, C; Stringfield, C; Orr, K; Zuba, J; Wallace, M; Grantham, J (2012). "Patterns of mortality in free-ranging California Condors (Gymnogyps californianus)". Journal of Wildlife Diseases. 48 (1): 95–112. Bibcode:2012JWDis..48...95R. doi:10.7589/0090-3558-48.1.95. PMID 22247378. S2CID 9680916.
  75. ^ Church, ME; Gwiazda, R; Risebrough, RW; Sorenson, K; Chamberlain, CP; Farry, S; Heinrich, W; Rideout, BA; Smith, DR (2006). "Ammunition is the Principal Source of Lead Accumulated by California Condors Re-Introduced to the Wild". Environmental Science & Technology. 40 (19): 6143–50. Bibcode:2006EnST...40.6143C. doi:10.1021/es060765s. PMID 17051813. Archived from the original on August 23, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  76. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 83
  77. ^ Kiff, L. F.; Peakall, D. B.; Wilbur, S. R. (1979). "Recent Changes in California Condor Eggshells" (PDF). Condor. 81 (2): 166–172. doi:10.2307/1367284. JSTOR 1367284. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  78. ^ Platt, John (September 20, 2013). "Banned Pesticide DDT Is Still Killing California Condors". Scientific American. Archived from the original on August 21, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2013.
  79. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 88
  80. ^ a b Sanders, Robert (May 13, 2021). "High genomic diversity is good news for California condor". Berkeley News. University of California Berkeley. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  81. ^ Robinson, Jacqueline A.; Bowie, Rauri C.K.; Dudchenko, Olga; Liberman Aiden, Erez; Hendrickson, Sher L.; Steiner, Cynthia C.; Ryder, Oliver A.; Mindell, David P.; Wall, Jeffrey D. (July 12, 2021). "Genome-wide diversity in the California condor tracks its prehistoric abundance and decline". Current Biology. 31 (13): P2939–2946.E5. Bibcode:2021CBio...31E2939R. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.035. PMID 33989525.
  82. ^ milius, susan (June 26, 2012). "Lead poisoning stymies condor recovery". Science News. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
  83. ^ "Condor Myths & Facts". U.S. National Park Service. February 22, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  84. ^ a b Thacker, Paul D.; Lubick, Naomi; Renner, Rebecca; Christen, Kris; Pelley, Janet (2006). "Condors are shot full of lead". Environmental Science & Technology. 40 (19): 5826–5831. doi:10.1021/es063001l. PMID 17051760.
  85. ^ Church, Molly E.; Gwiazda, Roberto; Risebrough, Robert W.; Sorenson, Kelly; Chamberlain, C. Page; Farry, Sean; Heinrich, William; Rideout, Bruce A.; Smith, Donald R. (October 1, 2006). "Ammunition is the principal source of lead accumulated by California condors re-introduced to the wild". Environmental Science & Technology. 40 (19): 6143–50. Bibcode:2006EnST...40.6143C. doi:10.1021/es060765s. PMID 17051813. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  86. ^ "Assembly Bill No. 821" (PDF). CA State Senate. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 10, 2008. Retrieved July 3, 2008.
  87. ^ Kelly, Terra R.; Peter H. Bloom; Stever G. Torres; Yvette Z. Hernandez; Robert H. Poppenga; Walter M. Boyce; Christine K. Johnson (2011). Iwaniuk, Andrew (ed.). "Impact of the California Lead Ammunition Ban of Reducing Lead Exposures in Golden Eagles and Turkey Vultures". PLOS ONE. 6 (4): e17656. Bibcode:2011PLoSO...617656K. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0017656. PMC 3071804. PMID 21494329.
  88. ^ Taylor, Dennis L. (May 8, 2014) "Lead ammo deadly beyond the target" Archived August 26, 2014, at the Wayback Machine The Californian (Salinas, CA)
  89. ^ Zhang, Sarah (January 3, 2013). "How Dangerous Is the Lead in Bullets?". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on June 21, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2020. The most direct solution is switching to lead-free ammunition or at least jacketed bullets, which have a lead core covered with a coating made of copper or nylon. Lead has been traditionally favored because of its density, but the military has since developed lead-free ammunition that reportedly works just as well.
  90. ^ Kelly, Terra R.; Grantham, Jesse; George, Daniel; Welch, Alacia; Brandt, Joseph; Burnett, L. Joseph; Sorenson, Kelly J.; Johnson, Matthew; Poppenga, Robert; Moen, David; Rasico, James; Rivers, James W.; Batistone, Carie; Johnson, Christine K. (July 15, 2014). "Spatiotemporal Patterns and Risk Factors for Lead Exposure in Endangered California Condors during 15 Years of Reintroduction". Conservation Biology. 28 (6): 1721–1730. Bibcode:2014ConBi..28.1721K. doi:10.1111/cobi.12342. PMID 25040286. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  91. ^ Thornton, Stuart (January 24, 2008). "Little Lost Condor: After a fight with a golden eagle in Big Sur, Centennia disappears". Monterey County Now. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  92. ^ "Golden Eagle Swoops on Condor Chick with Condor Parents in Hot Pursuit: October 11, 2022". Cornell Lab Bird Cams. Cornell Lab of Ornithology. October 11, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  93. ^ "California Condor Recovery Program". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge. December 2006. Archived from the original on September 11, 2007. Retrieved September 13, 2007.
  94. ^ Yablonski, Steven (February 14, 2024). "Endangered California condors compete for love on Valentine's Day: It's complicated". FOX Weather. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  95. ^ Hovey, Tim E.; Pareti, Jennifer S. (2020). "Unusual feeding observations of the California condor in the wild". California Fish and Wildlife. 106 (2): 191–193. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  96. ^ Carlson, Cheri (April 24, 2023). "California agencies on high alert after 20 endangered condors die". Ventura County Star. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  97. ^ "California Condor HPAI Response Update - June 2, 2023". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. June 2, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  98. ^ "California Condor HPAI Response Update - August 4, 2023". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. August 4, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  99. ^ "California Condors & HPAI Update". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. February 2, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  100. ^ Sheppard, Brad. "Condors". Sheppard Software. Archived from the original on August 22, 2007. Retrieved August 27, 2007.
  101. ^ "Condors Set Up First Nest In 100 Years". Sky News. March 30, 2006. Archived from the original on December 9, 2008. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  102. ^ Muldoon, Katy (May 20, 2012). "California Condors Hit a Milestone – a Population of 405 – after Nearly Going Extinct". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on May 21, 2012. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
  103. ^ "California Condor Recovery Program (monthly status report)" (PDF). National Park Service. June 30, 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved August 31, 2014.
  104. ^ "California Condor Recovery Program". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  105. ^ "California condors reach key survival milestone in the wild". Monterey Herald. February 23, 2016. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  106. ^ "Condors to take flight in Baja Sierras". UCMEXUS (University of California Institute for Mexico and the United States). Spring 2003. Archived from the original on June 22, 2017. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
  107. ^ "FAQ About California Condors". Santa Barbara Zoo. April 15, 2009. Archived from the original on June 13, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2011.
  108. ^ Watkins, Thomas (April 3, 2007). "California Condor lays egg in Mexico". USA Today. Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 26, 2008. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  109. ^ "Polluelos de cóndor de California inician el 'vuelo' hacia su liberación" (in Spanish). June 27, 2016. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2016.
  110. ^ Galindo, Yadira (June 18, 2009). "Condor Chick Hatches in Mexican Wilderness". California Condor Conservation. Archived from the original on February 4, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  111. ^ P. Rogers (June 14, 2014). "First California condor spotted in San Mateo County since 1904". Vallejo Times Herald. Archived from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
  112. ^ Banks, Alicia (June 16, 2014) "Condor spotted in San Mateo County is first in 110 years" Archived June 20, 2014, at the Wayback Machine Los Angeles Times
  113. ^ National Park Service: Zion National Park – Biologists Catch First Glimpse of Condor Chick in Utah Archived July 19, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, July 15, 2014
  114. ^ Andrew, Scottie; Ries, Brian (July 22, 2019). "The 1,000th California condor has hatched in a victory for the species that nearly went extinct". CNN. Archived from the original on July 28, 2019. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  115. ^ "California condors seen in Sequoia after nearly 50 years". AP NEWS. July 7, 2020. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  116. ^ "Condors are soaring again over Northern California's coastal redwoods". National Public Radio. Associated Press. May 3, 2022. Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  117. ^ "California Condors and Native American Culture". Visit California. 2023. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  118. ^ a b c Fabbri, R. (July 14, 2022). "Meet the condors of the Pacific Northwest". U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  119. ^ a b Levy, S. (June 22, 2022). "How the Yurok Tribe Is Bringing Back the California Condor". Undark. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  120. ^ "Humboldt ERFSA learns about California condors". Times Standard. MediaNews Group. March 3, 2024. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
  121. ^ Wear, K. (November 9, 2023). "Reclaiming Their Ancestral Lands". North Coast Journal. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  122. ^ "Condor Watch Archived". Zooniverse. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
  123. ^ a b Stephens, Tim (April 15, 2014). "'Condor Watch' enlists citizen scientists to help an endangered species". University of California. Archived from the original on September 2, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  124. ^ "'Condor watch' enlists citizen scientists to help endangered species". ScienceDaily. April 15, 2014. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  125. ^ McCaffrey, R.E. (2005). Using Citizen Science in Urban Bird Studies. Urban Habitats. 3 (1). p. 70–86.
  126. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 39
  127. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 37
  128. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 38
  129. ^ a b Nielsen 2006, p. 40
  130. ^ Wallace, William J.; Lathrap, Donald W. (1959). "Ceremonial Bird Burials in San Francisco Bay Shellmounds". American Antiquity. 25 (2): 262–264. doi:10.2307/277447. JSTOR 277447. S2CID 163835230.
  131. ^ Nielsen 2006, p. 36
  132. ^ Foster, J.W (2024). "Wings of the Spirit: The Place of the California Condor Among Native Peoples of the Californias". California Department of Parks and Recreation. State of California. Retrieved March 4, 2024. Many ceremonies throughout California involved dancers dressed in capes of condor skins or condor feather bands
  133. ^ a b Nielsen 2006, p. 41
  134. ^ a b Snyder, N.F.R.; Snyder, H. (2000). The California condor : a saga of natural history and conservation. San Diego: Academic Press. pp. 43–44. ISBN 978-0-12-654005-5. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  135. ^ Gifford, E.W. (May 8, 1926). "Miwok Cults" (PDF). University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology. 18 (3): 394–396. Retrieved April 20, 2024. The eagle and condor were bird chiefs and their capture or killing was always preceded by the making of meal or seed offerings.
  136. ^ Kroeber, A.L. (February 27, 1932). "The Patwin and their neighbours" (PDF). University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology. 29 (4): 279. Retrieved April 20, 2024. Eagles (sul) and condors (molok), were shot, not netted, according to most informants; though one told of a spring noose on a bent-over live oak sapling.
  137. ^ Bates, C.D.; Hamber, J.A.; Lee, M.J. (1993). The California Condor and the California Indians. Vol. 19. American Indian Art. p. 41. Young birds taken from the nest were raised and then used in a ceremony that culminated in the killing of the bird by strangulation or pressing on its heart.
  138. ^ Gifford, E.W.; Kroeber, A.L. (July 1, 1937). "Culture Element Distributions: IV Pomo". University of California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology. 37 (4): 170, 130. Retrieved April 20, 2024. Whole condor (sul) skin worn by male dancer.
  139. ^ a b Wilbur, S. (2012). "Condors and Indians". Symbios Books. Retrieved April 21, 2024.

Cited texts

edit

Further reading

edit
  • Arredondo, Oscar (1976). "The Great Predatory Birds of the Pleistocene of Cuba". In Olson, Storrs L. (ed.). Collected Papers in Avian Paleontology Honoring the 90th Birthday of Alexander Wetmore. Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology. Vol. 27. Translated by Olson, Storrs L. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press. pp. 169–187. doi:10.5479/si.00810266.27.1.
edit
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gymnogyps californianus.
 
Wikispecies has information related to California condor.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=California_condor&oldid=1257288504"