Two California Condor chicks fledged from their nests in the Grand
Canyon in December, bringing the world's population of endangered
California Condors now flying free in the wild to 169. This is the
first year that there are more condors flying free than are in
captivity for breeding purposes.

"This shows that we are making real progress in bringing this
ecologically significant bird back from the brink of extinction,"
said Bill Heinrich, who oversees the condor recovery program for The
Peregrine Fund, a Boise-based conservation organization for birds of
prey. "I am thrilled that these two chicks appear to be doing well
and I hope they will survive to become productive members of the
flock."

Currently, the total number of California Condors is 327, with 158 in
captivity. Of the 169 condors in the wild, 67 are in Arizona and 83
are in California. There also are 19 California Condors flying free
in Mexico. The goal is to produce at least 150 members in each of the
U.S. populations, including at least 15 breeding pairs.

The Peregrine Fund breeds and produces condors at its World Center
for Birds of Prey in Boise and releases them to the wild in northern
Arizona. Eight wild condor chicks also hatched this year in
California, where a geographically separate population is being
produced by zoos, along with The Peregrine Fund.

California Condors are some of the world's rarest birds. Their
numbers had dropped to just 22 individuals when the recovery program
began in the 1980s. Because condors eat carrion, they help fulfill
the role that scavengers play in the environment by consuming dead
animal carcasses that might otherwise spread disease and foul land
and water resources.

The Grand Canyon chicks, which hatched in May, were produced by two
sets of condor parents nesting in the canyon's remote ledges and
caves. The chicks were first observed testing their wings with short
flights in September and October. One of the chicks was produced by
the same adult pair that in 2003 hatched the first wild condor chick
in the Grand Canyon in more than 100 years. The other chick belongs
to first-time parents. The adult female is the last bird remaining
from the group that was released when the Arizona recovery program
began in 1996.

This month's fledglings make a total of nine wild chicks hatched in
the Grand Canyon since 1996. Eight are still alive.

The largest survival challenge facing the two new chicks and all
condors is lead poisoning from lost or unretrieved remains of animals
shot with lead ammunition, Heinrich said. The Peregrine Fund works
with the Arizona Game and Fish Department and local hunting groups on
an awareness campaign that has produced a dramatic increase in the
number of hunters who voluntarily switch to copper bullets or other
non-lead alternatives in condor country, with a corresponding drop in
condor deaths due to lead poisoning.

"We are grateful to all the hunters who are valued partners in
restoring California Condors to their historic range," Heinrich said.

Nevertheless, every condor must be captured twice each year and
tested for lead poisoning. Because they are social eaters, it is
possible for just one carcass to poison several birds. Condors are
treated with chelation, a process that removes lead from a bird's
body, and re-released to the wild. None treated this year have yet
died from lead poisoning.

"Until we significantly reduce the amount of lead they are
exposed to, we will never have a self-sustaining population of
condors," Heinrich said. "We look forward to the day when they no
longer need us to survive."

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Did you know?
• Prior to reintroduction, the last wild condor in Arizona was
sighted just south of the Grand Canyon in 1924.
• Condors reach maturity at about six years of age. They usually
produce one egg every other year.
• Recovery and reintroduction cooperators include The Peregrine
Fund, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Utah Division of Wildlife
Resources, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service and U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.