208

Jul 31 2013

Big Creek Condor chick #665

#665 was given to Condor #168 and Condor #208 as a foster egg and hatched May 17, 2012. These spectacular parents are very close and they took excellent care of #665 in the cozy confines of a redwood nest cavity. However, they hit an unintended snag. Good condor parents try to find fragments of bone and seashells to bring back to their chick in the nest. The calcium in these items is essential for the chick’s bone growth so that they grow up healthy and sturdy. Unfortunately, condors have trouble distinguishing man-made pieces of trash from their target items. During #665’s routine nest entries, there were multiple instances when it was clear that “micro-trash” was a problem. Biologists found small trash items in his nest and even felt some trash in his crop (including a bottle cap and glass). Indeed, we have found buttons, pull-tabs from cans, screws, metal washers, and other man-made trash items in a number of nests. Sadly, some chicks have died from ingesting these items, so it is very important to pick up trash in the wild, no matter how small, whether it belongs to you or others.

Despite the micro-trash hazards of his days as a chick, #665 has been doing well along the Big Sur coast throughout 2013. He stuck around his natal redwood forest territory quite a bit for the first several months of his life, hence the nickname, Redwood Son. As he has aged, he has begun to explore more of Big Sur and hang out with other juvenile condors in his cohort.

Jun 01 2012

Condors back nesting at Big Creek Reserve in 2012

Our local pair, #168 and #208 are back in Big Creek but have found a different site to nest this year. Taken from the VWS’s field notes, they write the following. I encourage readers to check out their field notes site as it contains news about all the condors’ activities.

April: Ventana Wildlife Society’s field biologists and interns embarked on a nest search in a remote canyon. Like a treasure hunt, our crew followed signals and trail-blazed through fallen trees, brush piles and poison oak until we located #168 “Beak Boy” and #208’s “Solo’s” new nest up high in a burned out redwood tree. This couple has nested in a different place each time in their territory since and all of their nest cavities have been in redwood trees. It is encouraging to know there are so many large holes and broken out tops to support them.

May: The Big Creek pair 168 and 208 has successfully accepted a foster egg, and the pair has started raising a chick.

I’ll post another update the next time I see the VWS crew checking on the chick.

Mark

May 10 2011

2011 Big Creek condor nest unsuccessful

Unfortunately I have some bad news about our Big Creek pair, 168 and 208. VWS brought a foster chick to the Big Creek nest on April 27th and the chick was found dead on April 30th. The cause of death is currently unknown. Everything seemed to be going really well with the egg delivery. The chick was pushing at its shell and vocalizing. The male, 168, settled down onto the egg after the insertion. All looked good. But then both parents started flying again and showed up at the VWS release site at Anderson Peak. That shouldn’t happen when condors are caring for chicks so they knew something was wrong. Mike made a dash to the tree site to find the foster chick lying dead at the bottom of the nest tree.

The hatching process is extremely precarious for any bird and many things can go wrong in the final stages. This may have been the case here, but until we know more about the cause of death, we can only speculate to what may have happened. We can only express how sorry we are for this pair’s loss…there’s always next year. We still have one pair that will be receiving a foster chick in early May, so 2011 will still be a very reproductive year for the Big Sur flock.

You can find out more about Big Sur condor activity here: http://www.ventanaws.org/species_condors_fieldnotes/index.htm

You can also read the life histories for 168 and 208 and others on the VWS site.

Apr 07 2011

Local condors nesting at Big Creek again

We are happy to find that our local condor pair, 168 and 208 have found a good burned out redwood tree at Big Creek Reserve to use as a nest, again. This pair nested at Big Creek in 2009 but abandoned the nest after their chick died from ingesting garbage (see Nature Notes – Condor Nest 2009 blogroll). They took a look over the ridge into Hot Springs Creek last year but they have returned and it looks like their new chosen tree should suit their needs. The 2009 tree was dead and ready to fall down but this year, the tree is still alive and strong, despite having a fire-carved cavity. Redwood tree cavities make good nests and Big Sur condors have figured out how to use them.

The pair’s egg is now safely being incubated at the Los Angeles Zoo. Female 208 has actually had a good track record with her eggs not being as thin-shelled as others, thus increasing their hatching success in the incubators. Still, the risk of the pair crushing the egg is too great and so biologists have initiated the standard practice of replacing the egg. There is a foster, captive-laid egg lined up for the Big Creek pair that should be ready in late April. In the mean time, the pair are happily taking care of their dummy egg and the Ventana Wildlife Society team are keeping watch.

Look for more news here as the nesting progresses. Information can also be found in the “Field Notes” section of the VWA news page.

-MDR

Jul 21 2009

Biologists Find Condor Chick Dead at Big Creek, Trash the Likely Cause

Biologists from Ventana Wildlife Society’s Condor Recovery Project in Big Sur made a disappointing discovery on July 21st. They found the lifeless body of a wild California condor chick lying in thick brush beneath its redwood nest tree in Landel-Hills Big Creek Reserve. Joe Burnett, Sr. Wildlife Biologist for the VWS Condor Project and who recovered the chick personally said, “Although the loss of a wild chick is never easy, we still feel very fortunate to have four chicks surviving in the wild this year. In 2007 and 2008 we had a combined total of three chicks produced and they still thrive today and 2009 is on track to be the most productive year yet for condors in central California.” Mark Readdie, Manager of UC-Santa Cruz Landel-Hills Big Creek Reserve added, “We are excited that the pair is nesting at Big Creek Reserve but it’s tragic how their chick died.”VWS Biologists located the deceased chick while preparing to conduct a routine nest check and exam on the chick. Upon closer examination, Biologists and local Veterinarian, Dr. Amy Wells, noticed an unusual protrusion from the chick’s ventriculus (stomach). Dr. Wells found a matted ball of trash (glass shards, plastic, a piece of metal, and a penny) and animal hair in the chick’s stomach. Condor #503 was then sent to San Diego Zoo’s Pathology Lab for a full necropsy. The necropsy results confirmed our suspicions with the discovery of even more trash (additional glass shards and pieces of rubber) lower in the stomach. Pathologists suspect the penny, which is high in zinc and very toxic to birds when ingested, could have also played a role in this chick’s death. Pathology noted that the carcass of the deceased chick was in an advanced state of decomposition and toxicity tests were inconclusive.

Veterinarian of Monterey’s Avian and Exotic Animal Health Clinic, Dr. Amy Wells said, “Based on the results of the necropsy exam, the most probable cause of death for chick #503 was trash ingestion and digestive blockage, which stopped the intake of food and eventually led to starvation.”

The parents have been diligently providing food for the chick they find along the Big Sur coast, which includes sea lion and whale meat. We suspect the parents are finding small pieces of trash while on the search for food. VWS biologists regularly clean up vehicle pull-off areas on scenic Highway One in Big Sur as a preventative measure. However, the task is just too big of a job for just a few people. “We are alarmed at the amount of trash left behind along the scenic Highway One in Big Sur and its effects on wildlife. We need help to clean up and more importantly we people to dispose of their trash appropriately”, said VWS executive director, Kelly Sorenson.

The wild female chick, known as #503, was approximately 3 1/2 months old and is the offspring of condors #208, aka “Solo” and #168 aka “Beak Boy”. For more information about current status of condor conservation and these individual condors, go to www.mycondor.org
Why the condor parents of this chick are collecting these small trash items is largely unknown, but biologists suspect it is a case of mistaken identity and that birds are accidentally picking up trash when they would normally be finding small pieces of animal bones as a calcium source for their chicks. Although, biologists still feel the most disturbing trend is the amount of trash available to the condors along Big Sur’s scenic highway. Condors aren’t alone with the trash issue; sea birds (albatross) and other animals (dolphins, sea otters) are also impacted by discarded trash. The beauty of Big Sur and its animal inhabitants are breathtaking, but beneath this amazing scenery there lies a trash problem that potentially threatens it all.

Condor #503 is one of five condors chicks produced in the wild in central California this year. The four remaining chicks continue to do well.

For more information go to www.ventanaws.org or www.mycondor.org

Ventana Wildlife Society is the only non-profit organization releasing and monitoring California condors in California and is a member of the California Condor Recovery Program, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Ventana Wildlife Society began condor releases in Big Sur in 1997 and then initiated a second release site in 2003 at Pinnacles National Monument in collaboration with the National Parks Service. Currently, Ventana Wildlife Society and the National Parks Service monitor and manage a flock of 48 wild condors in Central California, roughly half the population for California, which is currently 94 birds.