Milestones in California Condor Conservation

In 1939 Carl Koford began studying California condors, establishing general biological characteristics, particularly their reproductive biology. Reasons for the condor's decline were determined to be shooting, pesticide poisoning, and habitat disappearance. About 150 birds remained in the wild.

In 1952, San Diego Zoo director Belle Benchley and curator K.C. Lint proposed a captive breeding program for condors based on Lint's success at breeding Andean condors using double-clutching. A permit was issued to catch a pair of juveniles but the plan was thwarted by environmentalists opposed to disturbing the wild birds.

In 1967 the California condor was included on the first official list of endangered species. Population estimates ranged from 50 to 60 birds.

In 1979 population estimates for the California condor ranged from 25 to 35 birds. The American Ornithologists Union, National Audubon Society, California Fish and Game Commission (CFGC), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) agreed on a more agressive research and conservation-breeding program. Arguments over the use of radiotelemetry and "hands-on research" delayed implementation.

In 1981 it was conclusively observed by biologists from the Condor Research Center in Ventura, California that California condors will routinely lay replacements for eggs lost early in the breeding season. This had not been observed previously because condors move several miles to lay the replacement. The CFGC and the USFWS granted the Center permission to attempt deliberate replacement clutching of all condor pairs to aid in establishing a captive population. The "condorminium," a special breeding facility, was built at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park with funds from the USFWS.

In 1982 it was established that pairs could be induced to breed annually rather than every other year. By encouraging annual nesting and inducing multiple clutching, researchers felt there was hope for increasing the population. Census data was collected with telephoto equipment for the first time, and it was determined that there were 23 birds in the wild.

In 1983 the first captive hatch was recorded at the San Diego Zoo. The egg was laid in the wild and brought to the Zoo. The young hatchling, named Sisquoc, was then sent to the Wild Animal Park.

In 1985 the wild population fell to nine condors and approval was given for bringing in all remaining condors for conservation breeding purposes.

Between 1983 and 1986 16 eggs were artifically incubated. Of these, 13 hatched and went on to produce surviving young.

On April 29, 1988 Molloko, the first California condor both conceived and hatched in captivity, hatched at the Wild Animal Park.

In 1992 the condor population numbered 52. Two California condors and two Andean condors were released in the Los Padres National Forest at the Sespe Condor Sanctuary in California in January. Six more California condors were released there in December.

In 1993, the Wild Animal Park and the Los Angeles Zoo were at capacity with 71 birds. Twelve condors were sent to The Peregrine Fund's World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho.

In 1993, because of power line and human activity problems, another release site was constructed in Lion Canyon in the Los Padres National Forest in Santa Barbara County, California. Four birds from the Sespe area and five additional birds were released there.

In 1994, power line and human aversion programs were instituted at the Los Angeles Zoo for all condor release candidates.

In 1996, 6 parent-reared condors were released 30 miles (48 kilometers) north of the Grand Canyon. Vermillion Cliffs was selected because of its remoteness and habitat features.

In 2000, biologists released Adult Condor #8 (AC-8) into the Sespe wilderness area, where she hatched more than 25 years ago. The event marked the first time a wild-born California condor had been returned to the wild since the 1980s.

In 2001, the first egg laid in the wild since the release program started was laid in Arizona. Two females, hatched at the Wild Animal Park in 1985, were observed at the nest site and it was uncertain which of those birds laid the egg. Unfortunately, that egg was later found broken in the nest.

In 2002, a condor pair that had been conservation reared, then released, successfully hatched the first chick to hatch in the wild since 1984. The egg hatched in a nest in the rugged backcountry of California's Ventura County.

In 2002, Adult condor #9 (AC-9), along with three year-old juveniles, was released into the Sespe Condor Sanctuary near the town of Fillmore, California. AC-9 was the last free-flying California condor captured for the conservation breeding program.

In 2002, six puppet-reared condors were released in the Sierra San Pedro Mártir mountain range of northern Baja California, Mexico, where California condors had previously survived until as recently as 1945. This release helped link the conservation efforts of Mexican and United States governments.

In 2003, 12 condors from 3 facilities were sent to the Oregon Zoo's new California condor conservation center to form 6 new breeding pairs.

In 2004, three chicks hatched in Ventura County, including one fathered by AC-9. "To have an original wild condor reproducing again in the wild after 17 years is very gratifying. We have come full circle," said Steve Thompson of the USFWS.

In 2005, four condors that were hatched and reared at the Wild Animal Park were released in Baja California, Mexico.

In 2007, the first egg since the birds' reintroduction in Mexico was laid, the first condor from the Mexico release program crossed the border into San Diego County, and a zoo in Mexico City received two condors from San Diego and becomes a partner in the California Condor Recovery Program.

In 2008, the California Condor Conservation Web site was created to provide the latest information from all of the organizations involved in this species’ recovery.

As of August 2008, there are 332 California condors, with 156 of those birds living in the wild.

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