Population had fallen to just 22 birds August 2011: Three California condors will be released to the wild in the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in northern Arizona next month.
Members of the public are welcome to watch the release from a viewing area, where spotting scopes will be set up. The release on Saturday, September 24 will be the 17th public release of condors in Arizona since a recovery programme began in 1996.
Hatched and reared in captivityCondors are hatched and reared in captivity at The Peregrine Fund's World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho, and transported to Arizona for release to the wild. Condors also come to the release area from the Oregon Zoo, Los Angeles Zoo, and San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
Currently, 70 condors are in the wild in the Grand Canyon region. The world's total population of endangered California Condors is 399, with 198 of them in the wild in Arizona, Utah, California, and Mexico. Condors were reduced to just 22 individuals in the 1980s when a programme was begun to save the species from extinction. Research shows that lead poisoning from spent lead ammunition is the principle mortality agent for the condor flock, which forages largely on its own, and the programme has also made advancements in reducing the prevalence and impact of lead.
Recovery and reintroduction cooperators in Arizona 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.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/condor-release011.html#cr
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