Sisquoc is an experienced father.
We’re excited to offer a unique view into a California condor’s nest via our new Condor Cam. I’d like to share a bit of information to help you enjoy what you’re seeing and how to tell “who’s who” on the Cam. If you have any questions about what you’re seeing, feel free to ask them in the “Comments” section at the end of this post, and we’ll do our best to provide answers.
The male condor in this pair is named Sisquoc (pronounced “SISS-kwawk”), and he is wearing yellow wing tags (#28). The female is called Shatash (pronounced “shah-TAHSH”); she is not wearing any wing tags. Sisquoc is the largest California condor at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, weighing in at 25 pounds (11 kilograms). He is visibly larger than Shatash.
At 2 weeks old, Sisquoc was fed by a keeper wearing a condor puppet.
Sisquoc was the first California condor ever hatched in a zoo (his egg was laid in the wild and brought to the San Diego Zoo for incubation). He emerged from his shell on March 30, 1983, and news of his hatching triggered an outpouring of mail from all over the world. Congratulatory letters were sent by conservationists, zoos, governments, school classrooms, and many individuals, all wanting to help with the condor project. And look at him now—time flies, doesn’t it?
Shatash hatched at the Los Angeles Zoo, one of our partners in the condor recovery program. Her father was the first condor to hatch at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park (again, from a wild-laid egg), back in 1985.
Sisquoc and Shatash have been paired together since 1993. This is their 21st egg. Fifteen chicks have hatched, and Sisquoc and Shatash have raised six of them themselves. The other chicks were raised by keepers who used a condor puppet so the chicks wouldn’t imprint on their human caretakers. Sisquoc and Shatash have proven to be great and reliable parents.
California condors tend to be monogamous and share ALL nest duties: incubating the egg, brooding the chick, feeding the chick, and defending the nest. Throughout incubation you will see Sisquoc and Shatash take turns sitting on the egg to keep it warm. You may see them roll or turn the egg periodically. This gentle egg movement is crucial for the development of the growing embryo.
Incubation bouts can be very short: just a few minutes or birds can sit for two or three days, so don’t be alarmed! Sometimes the parents will sit together in the nest. Condor eggs incubate at about 98 degrees Fahrenheit (36 degrees Celsius). Their egg was laid January 12, 2012, and we are expecting it to “pip,” or start hatching, after 55 days of incubation, around March 7, 2012. We can’t wait!
Ron Webb is a senior condor keeper at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
I love all animals!! Really do and I would have as many as I am allowed!! But they would have to be able to coexsive with each other!!
Thank you for the information. What happens if the eggs are not turned?
The turning of bird eggs during incubation provides many benefits. First, it keeps the embryo from settling on one side of the egg, causing it to stick to the internal membranes. More importantly, turning optimizes membrane growth and fluid dynamics. There are several membranes that surround and connect to the embryo (the yolk sac membrane, the chorio-allantoic membrane, the amnion, the allantois). If these membranes are compromised, the embryo can be stunted or even die. Studies have shown that eggs that aren’t turned properly have embryos with lower heart rates, lower oxygen consumption, and lower growth rates. Also, turning eggs promotes the embryo’s use of albumen. Albumen (a.k.a. “the egg white”) is the growing embryo’s major source of water, mineral ions, vitamins, and proteins.
I was watching the condor cam at 9:24 pst time and noticed neither of the parents incubating the egg.. Perhaps a time out for both or do they think it’s no longer viable?
Condor Team responds: Based on previous observations before we started the Condor Cam, we learned that from time to time the condor pair leave the egg unattended. This is one of the nesting aspects we learned when we started the breeding program at the Park. The pairs in the wild also exhibit this behavior.
You are getting to see nesting activites that people have not been able to see previously. Enjoy!
Hello Ron:
What a wonderful program. congratulations to you and all at San Diego Zoo taking part in your wonderful programs. We are entrusted to care for our creatures. it has been wonderful following the condors. I can only hope and pray that this is the be ginning of more programs to come to help so many of our creatures in need, whether it is dogs, horses (domestic animals) and our wonderful wildlife in general (possums, racoons, etc.) Thank you for all you do at the San Diego Zoo. I hope to visit the Zoo
one day soon. Keep up the great work.
Denise Galletta
I believe i have the right site to go to the condor web cam.
I have gone so MANY times, and NEVER see ANYTHING on there.
can you help me, please ???????
thank you…………..
monday, March 19th 10:30 PM ……..
Moderator’s note: You won’t see much at night, but you should be able to see at least one parent watching the chick during the day: http://www.sandiegozooglobal.org/video/condor_cam