How did Big Sur’s California condors fare in January’s fierce storms?

How did the nine juvenile California Condors — recently released in San Luis Obispo County — fare in the ferocious winds and drenching rains of late January?

The good news? Very well.

“Condors are resilient,” according to Kelly Sorenson with Ventana Wildlife Society. “Condors are made for rough weather. They are really tough birds and can deal with cold temperatures and storms very well.”

The nine juveniles were released from their holding pen in the rugged mountains east of San Simeon (four birds on Nov. 19; seven on Dec. 12). Those mountains were drenched with up to 17 inches of rain over a three-day period late last month.

What do these enormous, endangered birds — with 9-1/2-foot wingspans — do in a fierce storm with pellets of rain lashing at their wings?

“Typically they perch on a branch that enables the trunk of the tree to break the wind,” said Sorenson, executive director of Ventana Wildlife Society (VWS). Moreover, nature has provided condors’ feathers with oils that repel moisture from rain, he added.

“As they get older (juveniles are between 2 and 3 years of age and don’t reach adulthood until 5) they also get wiser to pick places to roost for the night that offer more protection when storms come,” Sorenson pointed out.

Nesting season arrives

Courtship for mature condors (November-December) is followed by nesting season (January-May), during which time eggs are laid. Condors lay one egg every other year.

Typically, courtship involves three major components: coordinated pair flights (in the nesting territory), mutual grooming, and “wing-out” displays (tips of wings drooped) with the head of the male suitor extended forward and bowed.

And while the nine juveniles released in San Simeon are not of breeding/courtship age, Sorenson made clear that the behaviors of “older birds from Big Sur and Pinnacles (reflect that) nesting is on the table this year.”

Currently, there are five pairs of condors — and one condor “trio courtship” — displaying strong nesting aptitudes among the Big Sur flock.

A common condor nesting display, “trio courtship” features two males and a female condor. Sorenson explained that the two males cooperate in the raising of the chick when it arrives.

Photographer Tim Huntington captured an image of the behavior recently, involving female Kodama (#646) with males Amigo (#204) and Fuego (#470).

As of the middle of February, no wild condor eggs have been seen in the Big Sur region, but the captive breeding program at the Oregon Zoo has announced that nine eggs have been produced thus far in 2021.

“A start like this gives up great hope we’ll be able to bolster wild condor numbers — especially after last year’s devastating wildfires,” said Dr. Kelly Flaminio, who oversees the zoo’s condor recovery efforts.

How many condors have died recently?

Twenty-four free-flying condors died in 2020 (nine from the Dolan Fire), and yet 101 free-flying condors were still in the air as of December.

Unfortunately, thus far in 2021, four condors have perished, reducing the number of condors in the wild (in the Big Sur, Pinnacles, and San Simeon regions) to 89, according to VWS

Still, given that only a dozen or so condors remained in the wild in 1982, the captive breeding program (avoiding condor extinction) has enhanced those numbers dramatically. Today, well over 400 of these endangered birds fly in the Western United States.