CALIFORNIA CONDORS- Tanner Coolidge
CALIFORNIA CONDORS
An Endangered Species Update by Tanner Coolidge
Many years ago, the skies over most of Central and Southern California were dominated by the massive creatures known as California Condors. Ranging from Los Angeles County to as far north as Monterey County, these colossal Condors were even present here, in the skies above San Luis Obispo!
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| A California Condor displaying its massive wingspan. http://www.audubon.org/news/california-condors-could-soon-soar-above-redwoods-again-thanks-one-local-tribe |
California Condors have
always been among my favorite birds. I remember the first time I saw
one while on a family road trip to The Grand Canyon. It was so large that
I mistook the bird for a small airplane and my six-year-old mind was blown
when my father informed me that it was actually a bird. Unfortunately, it
turns out that I was very lucky to see one of these creatures as the species
is critically endangered. There is hope however. The good men and women of
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, combined with numerous scientists and
civilians are working tirelessly to revive the species. This blog contains the
details of their recovery plan as well as all kinds of interesting Condor
facts. Enjoy the read and see what you can do to help save these awesome birds!
Fun Facts
California Condors are an incredible species. They can
fly at altitudes of up to 15,000 feet! (To give you an idea of how high
that is, commercial airlines fly at an altitude just over 30,000 feet)
Condors have been known to travel over 150 miles in a single day while in
search of food!
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An adult California Condor in captivity. Notice the white feathers under the wings.
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California Condors are among the largest flying birds on
the planet. Mature adults can have a wingspan of 9 1/2 feet and weigh as
much as 22 pounds! What’s very interesting is males and females are
virtually indistinguishable from each other! They’re covered almost entirely in
beautiful black feathers with the exception of white feathers on the underside
of the wing and their head, which is bald.
Taxonomy
The California Condor
(Gymnogyps californianus) is one of seven members of the
Cathartidae Family. They are also referred to as the “New World Vultures.”
Reproduction
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A California Condor nursing its’ recently hatched offspring.
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Condors generally nest in
rock formations. However, some have been known to roost in Giant Sequoia
trees. They are “K-selected,” which means they have a slow reproductive life
strategy that involves copious parental care for their young. Condors only
lay ONE egg and like humans, both parents equally share the responsibility
for raising it.
Condor’s Niche
Condors play an extremely
important role in the environment. They are known as “nature's cleanup
crew” because, like other vultures, they are scavengers. They use their
excellent sense of smell and superior vision to spot and devour predator’s
leftovers such as dear, carrion, goats, sheep, and more. Without Condors,
carcasses would begin to accumulate all across the ecosystem. This graphic
represents the greater food web and the function of the ecosystem that Condors
contribute to:
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The California Condor’s place in the ecology of its ecosystem.
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Range Changes
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The “wishbone” region where conservation efforts are focused.
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100,000 years ago, condors dominated the skies coast to
coast as far north as Canada and as far south as Mexico. By the 1950s, the
remainder of California’s Condors only encompassed a “wishbone” shaped
region in the six counties north of Los Angeles. While condors are present in
areas of Arizona, Utah, and Mexico, this “wishbone” range is the recovery
team’s primary area of concern.
Population Changes
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Image: Condor population fluctuation since 1950.
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While specific historical
populations are often disputed, it is believed that by 1967, the total
population was roughly 60 individuals. That dwindled to 25 to 35 1978, when
conservation efforts really began. Thanks to captive breeding, the population
today is 446 individuals with only 276 of those in the wild. Interestingly
enough, Cal Poly was actually involved in this process as seen here in this
excerpt from the recovery report, “In 1981, the Service, in cooperation with
California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo, began census
efforts based on individual identifications of condors by photographing flight
silhouettes.” Pretty cool!
Historic and Current Threats
The California Condor was listed as endangered on March
11th, 1967. Their decline can be attributed to two main factors:
1) lead poisoning from bullets in animal carcasses
2) shooting
The chemical Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane
or “DDT,” also played a role as it caused the bird’s eggshells to
thin and eventually crack during incubation.
The California Condor remains critically endangered to
this day:
Listing Status: Endangered
and Experimental Population, Non-Essential
Individuals today face continued threats from human
development. Habitat loss is a major factor as their historic ranges are
now considered “prime real estate.” The man-made world is directly clashing
with the natural one and Condors are a perfect example of this phenomenon. Four
of the first 19 Condors that were re-released into the wild died from
collisions with power lines. In 1992, an individual was arrested for
shooting a Condor.
Recovery Plan
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The 1996 California Condor Recovery Plan.
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The recovery strategy for
the California Condor is composed of five main objectives working toward the
overall goal of reclassifying the condor to a threatened rather than endangered
species. In order to do this, there must be at least two non-captive populations
and one captive population. These will each include 150 birds with 15
breeding pairs.
OBJECTIVE 1) increasing reproduction in captivity to provide condors for release
Here's how the process works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhV9mNrbp9w
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A fake Condor nurses a hatchling at the San Diego Zoo.
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Essentially, this objective seeks to preserve a healthy
gene pool. Single populations are at a much greater risk for inbreeding.
The more populations, the better! The team will maintain five
separate captive breeding programs while working to create more. At each,
they will professionally breed Condors to maximize genetic diversity. By
exchanging offspring between the programs, they will balance genes, age,
and sex-ratios of all the subpopulations. After extensive studies, they will
select the strongest Condors to be released into the wild.
OBJECTIVE 2) the release of condors to the wild
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Condor release sites in three states and Mexico.
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This step
involves extensive research. The team needed to develop criteria for selecting
release sites and protocols for releasing the birds. These sites are
actually located in Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, and right here
in San Luis Obispo County! After these plans were finalized, they began
releasing Condors into the wild focusing mainly on the “wishbone” area. The
re-introduced individuals are closely monitored and protected.
OBJECTIVE 3) minimizing condor mortality factors
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Condors without manmade burden.
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All the work done to breed these birds will be worthless
if they aren't able to survive in the wild. This objective is crucial to
guaranteeing the species’ safe return. After assessing historical causes of
death, the team concluded there were several main factors to address. First,
they must provide adequate law enforcement to prevent direct shootings. Next,
they will monitor contaminants in every aspect of the environment to minimize
poisoning. To avoid the problem of collision with man-made objects, they will
release the birds in areas with low amounts of power lines, wind turbines, and
aircraft.
OBJECTIVE 4) maintaining habitat for condor recovery
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A ranger releasing a Condor back into the wild!
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This objective can be achieved through providing safe
habitat for Condors in the wild. Habitat loss/degradation is one of the
greatest threats facing Condors today. Prime conditions are fostered by
protecting known nesting/roosting sites and encouraging landowners to leave
dead livestock on rangeland.
OBJECTIVE 5) implementing condor information and education programS
The last objective
coincides directly with this blog! By educating governmental land
managers, landowners, and the general public on condors, there will be an
army of environmentally minded supporters (like you!) to help the species
thrive in the wild. This will include videos, training sessions, exhibits,
and observational points to view the condors.
YOUR TURN!
Now that you
know more about these incredible birds, here’s what you can do to help!
- Stay informed- By keeping up
with Condor efforts, you’re supporting them. The more you know, the
more you can tell others. Spread the word! Let’s rally behind these birds
and wish them safe return to the wild.
- Contribute- Go to www.condorwatch.org
to view photos of Condors and submit your
observations. You’ll be contributing
information that biologists from Condor recovery teams actually review and
consider!
- Report poaching- If you live
in an area where Condors live and see anything suspicious, report it! Call
(888) DFG-CALTIP (888-334-2258)
- Be environmentally friendly!
Recycle, reduce, reuse, clean up litter, celebrate the outdoors! Try to
limit your consumption and protect our planet.
- Volunteer! There are many organizations working to help California Condors. They would be happy to have you! Here are the links to some local organizations:
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Consider the size of these birds. Massive!
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ADDITIONAL
RESOURCES
If you’d like to learn more about California
Condors, here are some helpful links!
Thank You for Reading! Go help a Condor!
-Tanner Coolidge
SOURCES
“California Condors.” San Diego Zoo, 31 Oct.
2014.
Kiff, Lloyd, Mesta, Robert, Wallace, Micheal.
“California Condor
“How To Help.” Pinnacles
National Park, 28 Feb, 2015.
PICTURES
https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nation-and-world/pair-of-california-condors-nesting-at-zion-national-park-gives-officials-hope/
ADDITIONAL
RESOURCES
If you’d like to learn more about California
Condors, here are some helpful links!
Thank You for Reading! Go help a Condor!
-Tanner Coolidge
BIO 227 MW 4:10-6:00
SOURCES
“California Condors.” San Diego Zoo, 31 Oct.
2014.
Accessed 2 Mar. 2018
Kiff, Lloyd, Mesta, Robert, Wallace, Micheal.
“California Condor
Recovery Plan.” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
April 1996.
Mar. 2018
“How To Help.” Pinnacles
National Park, 28 Feb, 2015.
Accessed 2 Mar. 2018
PICTURES
https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nation-and-world/pair-of-california-condors-nesting-at-zion-national-park-gives-officials-hope/
I really like that you added yourself in introducing the Condor, it really shows that you are interested and invested in this species. It's super interesting how they only lay one egg! I wonder how their recovery will be being so close to the LA area. Great work on this, it is very thorough!
ReplyDelete-Maeve
Awesome post, short and sweet paragraphs throughout made it easier to read and follow as well as highlighted the important points. Great way of including your own experiences which really goes a long way with adding power to your blog. Well written with awesome ways too help which are actually things we can all do! Nice work!!! - Xavier Caldera
ReplyDeleteWow! I really enjoyed reading your intro and the fun facts, I like how the intro was a little personal and you shared an experience you had with the species. I also enjoyed that last picture you used! Comparing the size of the Condor, truely amazing how large their wingspan is! Overall, great post! -Amber Buzzard
ReplyDeleteI think it's great how passionate you are about this species and recommend so many good ways of getting involved/helping. It's interesting how the scientists needed 15 breeding pairs and 150 individuals to help repopulate this species. I also think it's interesting that 4 of the Condors died because of collision with powerless. Good job on your blog! -Christine Bradley
ReplyDeleteIts really neat that you have been interested in Condors for some time before this assignment. Your blog reflects this well and you did a great job researching this species. I hope the recovery works out well for them! _ Michael Cipolletti
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting that males and females are hardly distinguishable from each other because most animals usually have a fairly easy way of differentiating the two. As it was stated that this species needs in depth conservation research, I am really hoping the California Condors receive it.
ReplyDelete-Adrienne Chin
It's awesome to read about how passionate you are about condors! A lot of great information in this post, it was interesting to learn how connected they are and what a large impact they have on the ecosystem. Great blog! - Sirena Chu
ReplyDelete