The California condor breeding season is winding down, and thus far nine eggs have been laid by condor hens at the Wild Animal Park. Two of those eggs were infertile, and one was transferred to the nest of a wild pair. That leaves the condor staff with six eggs to be reared, either by hand-rearing methods or by the condors themselves. Currently three hens–Molloko, Almiyi, and Sulu–are incubating ” dummy” eggs that will be swapped with real eggs once they are ready to hatch. These birds, along with their mates, will parent-rear a youngster over the next several months.

It is possible that more eggs will be forthcoming, as there are three females who laid eggs that were removed from the nest. This promotes double-clutching, allowing a pair of birds to double their reproductive output for the year, an important management technique for such a highly endangered species. There are about 275 condors in existence, making them quite rare. The number is much higher today than the population in 1982, when only 23 California condors existed. We’ll keep our fingers crossed that our hens Sespe, Shatash, and Cachuma each lay another egg before the season is through.

The total reproductive output of the condor population is measured by counting up the eggs from each collaborating institution involved with condor restoration. The Los Angeles Zoo, The Peregrine Fund, and the Oregon Zoo all have breeding pairs that will certainly have eggs this year. In addition, we can add in any eggs that may have been laid in wild nests in any of the many release sites throughout California and Arizona or in Baja California, Mexico. Cross your fingers that we may cross the 300-bird barrier in 2007.

In the meantime, we continue to study a crop of last year’s fledglings due to be transferred to Mexico later this year. Our group of ” colorful” youngsters ““ nicknamed Blue, White, Yellow, and Red ““ continue to grow and develop. Their social dynamics are very interesting. The lone male bird, Blue, is clearly bigger than the other fledges, but this does not necessarily afford him a position of status in the flock. This year, it seems the group has no clearly dominant individual other than Itaxme, the adult female charged with mentoring this motley crew. This stands in contrast to the fledglings studied in 2005, in which a clear social hierarchy was developed with respect to some of the birds.

The condor project has proved to be an exciting foray into the bird world for me. I enjoy learning about the various aspects of the program, from bird behavior to management techniques to scientific inquiry. These birds represent a real and ongoing conservation success story. If you come to the Wild Animal Park, be sure to take the time to trek out to Condor Ridge so you, too, can enjoy these fascinating birds.

Suzanne Hall is the senior research laboratory technician for the Giant Panda Conservation Unit of Applied Animal Ecology/CRES. Read her previous condor blog, ‘Tis the Season.

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