In the spring of 1982, a condor hatched in the rugged wilderness of the Los Padres National Forest, in the Sespe Condor Sanctuary, just north of Fillmore, California. By the time it fledged, or left its nest, in late summer, only 22 California condors existed in the world. The California Condor Recovery Program decided to form a “captive flock” of condors at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park and the Los Angeles Zoo in the hope of breeding condors to be released back into the wild to help increase the size of the “wild flock.” The plan was to collect juvenile condors or wild-laid eggs to hatch in captivity (see Sespe’s blog entry from May 23, 2008). When these chicks and fledglings would reach maturity, the goal was to release their offspring to the wild.

The first condor brought in from the wild under the auspices of the California Condor Recovery Program was the aforementioned chick that hatched in 1982. It was trapped near its nest on Friday the 13^th of August 1982 and taken to the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park. It was given the name Xol-Xol (pronounced “Hole-Hole”), a Chumash word for “supernatural condor” or “one of the sky people.” The sex of Xol-Xol was unknown, but everyone was hoping it was a female. A male condor at the Los Angeles Zoo, named Topa-Topa, who had been living alone there since 1967 (before the Recovery Program began), needed a mate. After the test results came back confirming that Xol-Xol was male, Topa-Topa would have to wait a little longer for a mate.

Xol-Xol has lived almost his whole life at the Wild Animal Park; for 17 months, he lived at the Los Angeles Zoo. He has sired 25 condors, 15 with his first mate, Ojai (who now lives at the Oregon Zoo), and 10 with his current mate, Molloko (see Molloko’s blog entry from Feb. 22, 2008). Four of his offspring are part of the captive breeding program, while 11 others currently are flying free: 7 in California, 2 in Arizona, and 2 in Baja California, Mexico. He sired 2 chicks this year; one will be released in Mexico, while the other will be released in either Arizona or California. Xol-Xol has been very helpful in raising 6 chicks of his own over the years (with the help of his mates, of course!).

History was made when Xol-Xol was the first California condor to live at the Wild Animal Park, but some of his offspring have made news as well. The first condors to breed in the wild since 1986 did so in 2001. They were captive-reared birds released to the wild and survived to maturity. The male from that nesting was one of Xol-Xol’s sons! Since then, several of Xol-Xol’s kids have reproduced in the wild.

Another of Xol-Xol’s progeny will be more familiar to frequent Zoo blog readers. Remember, back in 2006 (blog entry Mar. 3, 2006), the condor from Arizona that was suffering from lead poisoning and needed a blood transfusion? A reader nicknamed the bird “Harry.” Well, Harry is one of Xol-Xol’s sons as well! (By the way, we hear that Harry is doing very well in Arizona these days.)

Lastly, in 2007, a condor released in Mexico flew across the border to become the first condor to fly in the skies of San Diego County for 97 years. The last confirmed sighting was near Palomar Mountain in 1910. You guessed it… the bird is a daughter of Xol-Xol’s!

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