Comments on: Breeding Season at the Wild Animal Park

By: Mike Clark

Mike Clark — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 16:00:00 +0000

Nice job S.D.W.A.P. !

By: Gordon Nunnally

Gordon Nunnally — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 16:00:00 +0000

I understand male and female Ca. Condors look alike and are sexed by looking at their chromosomes in their blood.

Who perfected that blood test and when?

Editor’s note: The technique was developed at CRES. The process is very beneficial to the program and now the entire CA condor recovery participants send their samples to San Diego for analysis. Even the birds hatched in the wild.

By: njr

njr — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 16:00:00 +0000

How exciting to hear that things have gone well with these birds after all the trauma of the fires! How do you decide whether to let the parents rear the birds or to hand-rear them?

Editor’s note: The population of condors in the world is at 316 birds at this point in time. One of the goals is to reach a population of 450 condors. We use a technique called double clutching. We remove the 1st egg and puppet raise that chick. A condor usually lays a replacement egg approx a month later. We usually leave that egg/chick with them to raise. That way we can hatch up to 4 chick in two seasons. In the wild they would raise only one chick every other year.