After its final chick hatched last week, the Oregon Zoo has wrapped up its California condor nesting season, one of the best they’ve had since the zoo started its conservation program for the endangered birds.
The first chick of the season hatched in March and, since then, six more baby condors have hatched at the zoo’s Jonsson Center for Wildlife Conservation in Clackamas County. It wasn’t quite a record year, but it was a very good one, Kelli Walker, the zoo’s lead condor keeper, said in a statement.
“We had more mating pairs than ever this year, which is great news for the future of the condor recovery program,” Walker said. “All seven chicks appear to be healthy and thriving, which should mark a significant step forward in the recovery of this critically endangered species.”
The most recent hatchling emerged on Thursday evening, the zoo said, and has been under the watchful care of Malibu, an experienced mother who has barely left the nest box since she started caring for the baby bird. Animal care staff have been keeping watch through cameras mounted in the nest.