California Condor
Extinct in the wild in 1987 — every condor alive today descends from 27 birds collected before the species vanished
No photo available for California Condor
Population
Around 560 individuals — brought back from 27
Location
California, Arizona, Utah, Baja California (Mexico)
Overview
In 1987, the last wild California condors were captured and added to a captive breeding program — the wild population was zero. The decision was agonizing and controversial: critics argued it would hasten extinction; proponents argued the alternative was certain extinction. The breeding program worked. Reintroduction began in 1992, and the wild population has grown to over 300 birds, with total numbers exceeding 560. It is one of the most dramatic recoveries — and most expensive per-bird — in conservation history.
Why they're at risk
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Lead poisoning from spent ammunition in the carcasses condors eat is the leading cause of death in wild-released birds. Condors consume lead bullet fragments in deer and other game left by hunters.
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Microtrash — bottle caps, glass fragments, and small human debris — is fed to chicks by parents who mistake it for food, causing fatal blockages.
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Power line collisions and electrocution on transmission infrastructure.
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The slow reproductive rate — one egg per pair every 1–2 years — means losses are difficult to offset without continued captive breeding support.
Reasons for hope
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Wild condor chicks hatched and raised without human intervention are now being recorded — the program has progressed from full management to documented wild reproduction.
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California banned lead ammunition for hunting statewide in 2019, directly addressing the leading cause of condor mortality.
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The total population surpassed 500 individuals in 2021 — the highest number since European colonization of the American West.
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Condors now soar over the Grand Canyon, Big Sur, and the Pacific Coast for the first time in decades, visible to millions of people.