California condors (Gymnogyps californianus) are one of the most endangered birds in the world, and both their recovery efforts and setbacks often make the news. Check back regularly to see the latest headlines about these amazing birds of prey (most recent stories will appear at the top of the list).
June 14, 2013 - Any birder would be thrilled to see a critically endangered California condor, but some local California residents aren't so thrilled when the birds appear. A flock of condors has taken up roosting in Bear Valley Springs, a small community north of Los Angeles, with unwelcome results.More »
March 8, 2013 - A total of seven California condors have been found dead in Utah since early December, a drastic rise in fatalities that has wildlife officials concerned. Testing has confirmed lead poisoning as the cause of death, and the number of dead birds is seriously threatening conservation efforts.More »
August 21, 2011 - Big Sur is one of only two places where wild California condors can be regularly seen, and now the skies there will be safer for these humongous birds. Pacific Gas & Electric has begun a $4.2 million project to bury overhead east-west power lines and remove wooden power poles in the condors' flight path.More »
June 4, 2011 - The endangered California condor - one of the most endangered birds in the world - has lost more than a dozen individuals in the last decade not to predators, old age or disease, but to lead poisoning.More »
September 25, 2010 - Four new California condors are flying in Arizona skies today, according to the San Jose Mercury News. The birds were released today at the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument near the Grand Canyon, a popular site for the release of captive-bred birds because of its suitable thermals and wild condor population.More »
February 27, 2010 - Test results have confirmed that three California condors died from the effects of lead poisoning in Arizona in January, according to the Los Angeles Times. The bodies of an adult female, her yearling chick and a young male were tested for poisoning by the Peregrine Fund, and the results bring the total of California condors killed from lead poisoning to 15 since the birds' reintroduction program began in 1996.More »
August 17, 2009 - The Yurok Tribe of the lower Klamath River is working to restore condors to northern California, hoping that by doing so they will improve the ecology and environmental health of the region, according to the Associated Press. California condors are sacred to the tribe, which uses their feathers for dances and ceremonies, but the supply of feathers is dwindling because tribal custom demands that the feathers be given voluntarily by the birds.More »
April 7, 2009 - In the past month, two California condors have been found shot and both birds now suffer from those injuries as well as lead poisoning that may impede their return to the wild, according to an article in the San Jose Mercury News. Both birds were found injured in Monterey County, revealing what may be a very disturbing threat to this endangered species.More »
March 9, 2009 - Though nearly extinct in the mid-1980s, California condors have steadily made a comeback thanks to captive breeding programs. Today, approximately 160 wild condors soar the skies in the West, including four newly freed birds that were released in northern Arizona on March 7.More »
•Endangered Condors a Nuisance?
June 14, 2013 - Any birder would be thrilled to see a critically endangered California condor, but some local California residents aren't so thrilled when the birds appear. A flock of condors has taken up roosting in Bear Valley Springs, a small community north of Los Angeles, with unwelcome results.More »
•Condor Deaths on the Rise
March 8, 2013 - A total of seven California condors have been found dead in Utah since early December, a drastic rise in fatalities that has wildlife officials concerned. Testing has confirmed lead poisoning as the cause of death, and the number of dead birds is seriously threatening conservation efforts.More »
•Power Lines Buried to Protect Condors
August 21, 2011 - Big Sur is one of only two places where wild California condors can be regularly seen, and now the skies there will be safer for these humongous birds. Pacific Gas & Electric has begun a $4.2 million project to bury overhead east-west power lines and remove wooden power poles in the condors' flight path.More »
•More Condors Suffer Lead Poisoning
June 4, 2011 - The endangered California condor - one of the most endangered birds in the world - has lost more than a dozen individuals in the last decade not to predators, old age or disease, but to lead poisoning.More »
•California Condors Released
September 25, 2010 - Four new California condors are flying in Arizona skies today, according to the San Jose Mercury News. The birds were released today at the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument near the Grand Canyon, a popular site for the release of captive-bred birds because of its suitable thermals and wild condor population.More »
•Lead Poisoning Kills Condors
February 27, 2010 - Test results have confirmed that three California condors died from the effects of lead poisoning in Arizona in January, according to the Los Angeles Times. The bodies of an adult female, her yearling chick and a young male were tested for poisoning by the Peregrine Fund, and the results bring the total of California condors killed from lead poisoning to 15 since the birds' reintroduction program began in 1996.More »
•Tribe Heals Condors to Heal World
August 17, 2009 - The Yurok Tribe of the lower Klamath River is working to restore condors to northern California, hoping that by doing so they will improve the ecology and environmental health of the region, according to the Associated Press. California condors are sacred to the tribe, which uses their feathers for dances and ceremonies, but the supply of feathers is dwindling because tribal custom demands that the feathers be given voluntarily by the birds.More »
•Bad News and Good News for Condors
April 7, 2009 - In the past month, two California condors have been found shot and both birds now suffer from those injuries as well as lead poisoning that may impede their return to the wild, according to an article in the San Jose Mercury News. Both birds were found injured in Monterey County, revealing what may be a very disturbing threat to this endangered species.More »
•Condor Comeback
March 9, 2009 - Though nearly extinct in the mid-1980s, California condors have steadily made a comeback thanks to captive breeding programs. Today, approximately 160 wild condors soar the skies in the West, including four newly freed birds that were released in northern Arizona on March 7.More »
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