Headwaters Master Naturalist Byron Hukee took advantage of a unique opportunity to help scientists further our knowledge of the endangered California Condor.
Many thanks to him for sharing his experience here. During a hike at Zion National Park, I saw and photographed two very large birds soaring high near the top of a canyon wall that turned out to be California condors.
On a subsequent visit, I was fortunate enough to watch a condor glide out of the mist on a snowy day and perch on a dead tree near Angels Landing. I have always loved the recreational opportunities afforded there, especially visiting the five national parks found in Utah. Heading that list is Zion in the southern part of the state. I first visited Zion in when my wife and I took our young family on a tour of several western national parks while on leave from my military assignment in the Phoenix, AZ area.
Sadly, our first visit to Zion was after the condor had already disappeared from that area. It was soon apparent that without human intervention, California condors very likely would become extinct. With only 21 estimated wild condors remaining, a limited captive breeding program was begun in using eggs and chicks removed from the wild, and a single captured adult condor.
During and early , the nine remaining wild condors were captured to establish a more viable captive breeding program, and since mature female condors produce but one egg every two years, this process was going to take some time. In , the capture of the last 21 remaining California condors in the wild was completed.
