Condor Overview
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Wild Central California Population
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Total Number
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Wild
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Captive
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California Condor Story
By the 1980s, the California Condor was on the brink of extinction. Populations had plummeted due to shooting, poisoning, collisions with power lines, egg collecting, and habitat loss. In 1987, the last wild condor was brought into captivity, joining just 26 others in a desperate effort to save the species. No one knew if these magnificent birds - with wings stretching nearly 10 feet—would ever soar freely again.
As the fate of the species hung in the balance, Ventana Wildlife Society took action. In 1997, we began releasing captive-bred condors along California’s central coast, restoring them to the wild where they belong. Since then, we’ve monitored their growing population, studied their scavenging on marine and terrestrial mammals, and celebrated their success nesting in the wild once more. These magnificent birds are now self-sufficient in most respects, but full recovery of the population is still threatened by lead poisoning. Together with the National Park Service, we continue to manage the central California flock—moving ever closer to our goal of a fully self-sustaining population. Read Full Story |
Help Us Save the Condors
From zero to more than 100 birds in central California, Ventana Wildlife Society has helped restore a wild California Condor population. Despite this success, condors continue to suffer preventable losses each year, most often from ingesting spent lead ammunition. Lead poisoning is still the leading cause of death for California Condors, but it’s a preventable threat - and we know it’s a problem we can solve with our proven Recovery Actions.
- California Condor in Big Sur Brochure (PDF)
- CondorKids.org - Created by our partners at Santa Barbara Zoo and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CondorKids.org is a place for students to learn about the California Condor Recovery Program including access to free, downloadable, condor-centric curriculum.
Meet The Staff
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Joe Burnett - California Condor Recovery Manager
Mike Stake - Non-lead Outreach manager
Tim Huntington - Sr Software Engineer, CACO Central Evan McWreath - GIS Specialist |
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