--- Begin forwarded message: From: "Aborn, David" <David-Aborn@xxxxxxx> To: "tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [TN-Bird] Condor Milestone Date: Wed, 27 Apr 2011 13:55:57 +0000 27 April 2011 From CNN. David Aborn Chattanooga, TN Almost 25 years after the California condor went extinct in the wild and dwindled to just 27 birds in captivity, North America's largest flying bird is on the verge of a watershed moment: Its total population is projected to hit 400 this spring, including 200 birds thriving in the wild. The projections come as curators are reporting a successful hatching season at breeding centers in California and elsewhere. "At the end of the breeding season, we should be at 400 if all goes to projection," said Michael Mace, curator of birds at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. "At the end of this year, we could have 200 birds in the wild. Both would be significant milestones." The 400 mark hasn't been seen since the 1920s or 1930s, Mace said. The condor population is currently 394, including 181 in the wild -- a marked improvement since 1987 when the condor was wiped out in the wild and only 27 lived at the San Diego Zoo, he said. The success hasn't been without new challenges. While the nearly 200 birds in the wilderness are resuming feeding activities last seen during the Lewis and Clark Expedition of the early 1800s, the condor is now ingesting the toxin DDE when eating marine carcasses, Mace said. The toxin causes the shell of condor eggs to thin, so conservationists are replacing the thin-shelled eggs laid in the wild with thicker-shelled eggs from breeding centers, Mace said. The thin-shelled eggs are taken to incubators in breeding facilities for hatching, he said. "Condors are doing what they normally do: They feed on marine animal carcasses," Mace said. "We are excited that condors are doing activities that Lewis and Clark observed more than 100 years ago. But it turns out these marine animals are feeding on DDE, and now the condors are feeding on them, and the shells of their eggs are thin and break." DDE is formed when the pesticide DDT breaks down. DDT is banned in the United States, but the chemical enters the environment through its use in other countries. "Some of these factors we're dealing with right now weren't factors five, 10 years ago," Mace said. For example, California condors are now being vaccinated for the West Nile virus, Mace said. =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should appear in the first paragraph. _____________________________________________________________ To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx _____________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. ______________________________________________________________ TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) endorse the views or opinions expressed by the members of this discussion group. Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ------------------------------ Assistant Moderator Andy Jones Cleveland, OH ------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Dave Worley Rosedale, VA -------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan Clarksville, TN __________________________________________________________ Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ARCHIVES TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ MAP RESOURCES Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com _____________________________________________________________ =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should appear in the first paragraph. _____________________________________________________________ To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx _____________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. ______________________________________________________________ TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) endorse the views or opinions expressed by the members of this discussion group. Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ------------------------------ Assistant Moderator Andy Jones Cleveland, OH ------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Dave Worley Rosedale, VA -------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan Clarksville, TN __________________________________________________________ Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ARCHIVES TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ MAP RESOURCES Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com _____________________________________________________________