Rare condor hatched, raised by foster parents in captivity, freed to live wild

By each accounts, Milagra the "miracle" California condor shouldn't beryllium live today.

But present astatine astir 17 months old, she is 1 of 3 of the elephantine endangered birds who stretched their wings successful the chaotic arsenic portion of a merchandise this play adjacent the Grand Canyon.

Even aft the doorway was opened Saturday, the birds didn't instantly permission their pen. After 20 minutes, 1 condor near the pen, followed 20 minutes aboriginal by different condor.

Then, aft sitting successful the pen for an hr and 20 minutes, Milagra exited the enclosure and took flight. When a livestream of the wildlife merchandise ended, a 4th condor remained successful the pen, not acceptable to leave.

For Milagra, determination is nary much due sanction for a young vertebrate that has managed to past against each odds. Her parent died from the worst outbreak of avian flu successful U.S. past soon aft she laid her egg, and her begetter astir succumbed to the aforesaid destiny portion struggling to incubate the ovum alone.

Milagra, which means occurrence successful Spanish, was rescued from her nest and hatched successful captivity acknowledgment to the attraction of her foster condor parents.

On brink of extinction

The exigency cognition was portion of a programme established astir 40 years agone to assistance bring the birds backmost from the brink of extinction erstwhile their numbers had plummeted to less than 2 dozen.

The Peregrine Fund and the Bureau of Land Management streamed the merchandise of Milagra and the others online Saturday from Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, astir 80 kilometers from the Grand Canyon's North Rim.

Condors person been released determination since 1996. But the yearly signifier was enactment connected clasp past twelvemonth due to the fact that of what is known arsenic the vertebrate flu. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza killed 21 condors successful the Utah-Arizona flock.

"This year's condor merchandise volition beryllium particularly impactful fixed the losses we experienced successful 2023 from HPAI and pb poisoning," said Tim Hauck, The Peregrine Fund's California Condor programme director.

Endangered taxon since 1967

Today, arsenic galore arsenic 360 of the birds are estimated to beryllium surviving successful the wild, with immoderate successful the Baja of Mexico and astir successful California, wherever akin releases continue. More than 200 others unrecorded successful captivity.

The largest onshore vertebrate successful North America with a wingspan of 2.9 meters, condors person been protected successful the U.S. arsenic an endangered taxon since 1967. Many conservationists see it a occurrence that immoderate beryllium astatine all.

Robert Bate, manager of the Vermilion Cliffs monument, said the merchandise was being shared online successful existent clip "so that the scope and scope of this unthinkable and palmy collaborative betterment effort tin proceed to animate radical worldwide."

California condors mate for beingness with a lifespan of up to 60 years and tin question up to 322 kilometers a day, which they person been known to bash arsenic they determination backmost and distant betwixt the Grand Canyon and Zion nationalist parks.

The Peregrine Fund started breeding condors successful practice with national wildlife managers successful 1993. The archetypal was released into the chaotic successful 1995. It would beryllium different 8 years earlier the archetypal chick was hatched retired of captivity.

Milagra's foster begetter was hatched successful the chaotic successful California successful 1983. He was 1 of the archetypal brought into the programme arsenic a nestling erstwhile less than 2 twelve were known to inactive beryllium worldwide.

Convinced it was the species' lone anticipation for survival, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service made an unprecedented, risky determination backmost past to seizure the remaining 22 known to beryllium to motorboat the breeding program. Over time, it has grown with assistance from the Oregon Zoo, Los Angeles Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park.