We Are Proud to Announce:Condor Canyon is now on Public Television for three years!
A total of 155 airings, of which 59 are Prime Time, are scheduled in June, broadcasting to 24 states and Puerto Rico. Check listings on your local PBS channel. For Your Home Collection
Condor Canyon is available on DVD, BLU-RAY, and 16GB flash drive, order your copy to enjoy and to share, today! |
Top News
- A Step in the Right Direction - We’re thrilled to announce that a $25,000 grant has been approved in support of our work to protect the critically endangered California Condor and provide environmental and outdoor education programs for youth and families. This funding is part of a two-year commitment providing general operating support to help implement proven recovery actions and strengthen community partnerships, especially with historically marginalized groups. The grant is funded by the John R. Marron Fund and the Nancy Jane Bletzer Fund for Animal Welfare, through the Community Foundation for Monterey County. We are deeply grateful for this continued support and look forward to putting it into action as we continue to raise much needed funds for condor recovery.
- Donate to Save the Condors Fund and help us reach $410.000 by October 2025! If existing donors give 25% more than last year and we gain at least 150 new donors, together, we can keep these magnificent California Condors - flying free! Your support is needed now more than ever to fuel our strategy of Condor Recovery Actions for the success of this Critically Endangered Species.
- Big Sur Discovery Center is now open! Located in the breathtaking Andrew Molera State Park, it's home to a must see exhibit, Wildlife of Big Sur. Open Saturdays & Sundays 10:00AM - 4:00PM through Sept. 1, 2025. We are also offering family friendly free 1-hour Nature Programs every Sunday at 10:00AM in June, July, and August. Pop-in for this nature talk, guided walk, or Condor Canyon screening.
- Big Sur Condor Nest Cam is set up watching Kodama (646) and Vincent (892)'s nest. The couple had an egg fail in February, however we are hopeful this seasoned pair will successfully lay another egg this year.
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Central California Flock
HPAI vaccination update: |
89% of wild condors are now vaccinated against Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)
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more news . . .
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If you find a sick/injured or deceased condor
Please do not attempt to handle or move them. Please contact us ASAP and we will assist. |
Species Recovery
Bald Eagles
Ventana Wildlife Society restored a breeding population of Bald Eagles to the California central coast from 1986-2000.
Ventana Wildlife Society restored a breeding population of Bald Eagles to the California central coast from 1986-2000.
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Bald Eagles are breeding once again in the central California coast region, thanks to a successful re-introduction project. From 1986-2000, we released 70 juvenile Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) at our Big Sur wildlife sanctuary. Our goal was to establish a population of four adult breeding Bald Eagle pairs, in the hopes of creating a self-sustaining population. At our last count, we found 30 nesting territories and the wild Bald Eagle population is thriving!
This video, filmed June 13, 2024, shows a mother feeding her eaglets in San Simeon, CA. These descendants of the 70 Bald Eagles released over 24 years ago are a testament to our species recovery program's success! |
California Condors
Restoring California Condors to the wild since 1997
Restoring California Condors to the wild since 1997
By the 1980s, the California Condor (Gymnogyps californianus) population was in crisis, and extinction in the wild seemed imminent. The dramatic decline of condors in the 20th century has been attributed to shooting, poisoning, electric power lines, egg collecting, and habitat loss. In 1987, the last wild California Condor was taken into captivity to join the 26 remaining condors in an attempt to bolster the population through a captive breeding program. At that time, it was uncertain whether or not North America's largest flying land bird (by wingspan, 9.5 feet) would ever again soar in the wild.
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Education
Connecting Youth to Nature Since 1992
Connecting Youth to Nature Since 1992
Since 1992, we've been providing outdoor education programs for youth. We pick them up in our fleet of four 15-passenger vans, meeting in communities from Castroville to Salinas, and inland from Prunedale to Greenfield. Our destinations have included whale watching boats in the bay, kayaks at Elkhorn Slough, tidepools at Point Pinos, caves in Pinnacles National Park, and forests in the Ventana Wilderness. We provide opportunities for children who have never experienced these things before and offer the discovery of a new world, new emotions, and new possibilities. More than 1,300 youth enroll in our outdoor education programs each year, but we still focus on the individual, their unique discoveries, and the potential they have to shape the lives of others.
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VWS works multiple Monterey County communities to provide weekly off-site nature classes for youth during the school year while monthly on-site Community Outdoor Club Meetings, single-day field trips and overnight campouts for multigenerational participants occur year-round. More . . .
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