Paicines
– The deaths of two endangered California condors from Pinnacles
National Monument remain a mystery more than seven weeks after
their bodies were found.
Paicines – The deaths of two endangered California condors from Pinnacles National Monument remain a mystery more than seven weeks after their bodies were found.
Biologists found a 1-year-old, recently released California condor dead May 12 in a field just outside of the monument. It was the park’s first condor death since its efforts to re-establish the endangered species began in 2003.
Pinnacles has 13 California condors flying in the wild. There are 133 total California condors in the wild and another 145 in captivity, according to the Ventana Wildlife Society.
Big Sur biologists found a second Pinnacles condor, a 4-year-old, dead near a power line that killed two of the birds in 2006, said Kelly Sorenson, executive director of the Ventana Wildlife Society. The Big Sur and Pinnacles flocks often migrate between the two parks.
The birds’ cause of death was not immediately apparent, and park officials sent the corpses to laboratories in Eugene, Ore., and San Diego for necropsies.
Carl Brenner, the park’s supervisor of education and interpretation, had expected results within three weeks after the deaths, or about four weeks ago, he has said. Brenner on Wednesday did not know when the results will be final.
“The lack of knowledge is always frustrating, but we’re anxious to do the right thing,” Brenner said.
Brenner said he would like to know the cause of the deaths soon, but would prefer that the labs be thorough and give the park accurate information.
Knowing what caused the deaths will help the park make changes to its rehabilitation program to help better manage the delicate condor population, Brenner said.
“It’s going to be interesting to get the results so that we know as a park what we can do differently or if there is anything we can do differently,” Brenner said.
The California condor rehabilitation program began in the 1980s when the species nearly became extinct. In 1987, federal biologists captured the remaining 22 California condors and started the program.
