Lead poisoning remains a major threat to Big Sur condors, killing 18 birds in 2 years

Lead poisoning continues to threaten the health of California’s 34-year-old condor captive breeding program as it tries to rebound from two devastating years that resulted in the deaths of 37 of the endangered birds.

Yet the Ventana Wildlife Society — Central California’s arm of the California Condor Recovery Program — remains hopeful that it has the tools to protect the birds and continue guiding them back from the brink of extinction.

It will need the public’s help, however.

The losses from the last two years were especially disappointing after recent history brought a sense of positivity to the campaign to restore the population of the ancient birds.

The number of free-flying condors in Central California, with their striking 9-1/2 foot wingspans and an ability to soar to heights of 15,000 feet, surged to a lofty record of 102 at the end of 2019.

Hopes were sky-high that the iconic birds’ re-population was moving toward success.

But then came 2020, a year in which 24 condors perished — nine from the ferocious Dolan Fire, eight from lead poisoning and seven from unknown sources — and the flock’s population shrunk to 93 birds.

That toll was mitigated a bit because the Ventana Wildlife Society added 15 young condors to the flock.

Six wild chicks fledged in the wild and 9 juveniles — all females — were released from the rugged mountains above San Simeon.

But now, the flock has taken another hit: Through December, another 13 condors have died with 10 of those losses due to lead poisoning, according to VWS senior wildlife biologist Joe Burnett.

Condors feed on the carcasses of dead animals (carrion), and when deer, squirrels or other wildlife are shot with lead ammunition — producing hundreds of lead fragments left in the critter — the birds are essentially dining on poison, and many become ill or perish as a result.

Merely beefing up the number of birds “cannot balance the loss of experienced birds,” VWS Executive Director Kelly Sorenson said.

For example, the death last year of Condor #438, a 14-year-old female in her prime who had just hit her stride as a breeder, represents a serious loss to the flock, Sorenson said.

And the death of Loner (#311), an 18-year-old condor, was a “big heart-breaker,” Burnett said. She was a “really experienced female who sired three chicks. … Her contribution was huge. … She wasn’t even half way through her life,” the biologist said.

Notwithstanding the continuing loss of condors to lead poisoning, Burnett considers 2021 “A major bounce-back year and we hope to see the flock breach the 100+ threshold again in 2022.”

Iniko’s release

Many otherwise cheerless condor narratives have been heartened by moments of regeneration and hope. One of those is the story of Iniko.

As the fast-moving, fiercely destructive Dolan Fire swept through the Big Sur wilderness in 2020, taking the life of Iniko’s father, Kingpin, the youngster remained huddled in her redwood cavity nest, high above the floor of the Big Sur forest. She was fed by her mother, Redwood Queen.

In the immediate aftermath of the fire, a male condor intruded into the nest cavity and force-fledged Iniko, too young to fly, from her nest, sending her plunging several feed to the ground below.

VWS, which had been monitoring the nest, sent a crew into the back country, rescued her on Oct. 19, removed her from the canyon and transported her to the Los Angeles Zoo for treatment and care.

Fast-forward to early December 2021: Along with two other juvenile females from the L.A. Zoo, a fully healthy Iniko was released into the wild from the San Simeon holding pen.

“Her release brought us full circle,” Burnett recounted. “From her survival in the Dolan Fire, to her evacuation in October 2020, to her recovery at the L.A. Zoo over the last 12 months, to her triumphant return to the wild on Dec. 4, 2021.”

The resilience of Iniko and the entire flock “never ceases to amaze,” Burnett continued. “There is definitely cause for hope for condors.”

The threat from lead poisoning

Meantime, to a large extent, hope for the future of the flock rests with a VWS giveaway program that aims to convince hunters to stop using lead ammunition.

There was burst of optimism for the survival of the iconic condor in July 2019 when a new law went into effect banning the use of lead ammunition when taking any wildlife with a firearm in California.

Asking hunters and ranchers to eschew lead ammunition was a bold move by lawmakers, and VWS understood that this far-reaching transformation would not likely be immediately embraced.

Indeed, the fact that 18 condors have perished from lead poisoning over the past two years is evidence that some hunters are still using lead bullets.

Since 2012, VWS has been offering free non-lead ammo to hunters and ranchers in seven counties (San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Kern and Fresno.)

To date, VWS has given away 10,772 boxes of non-lead ammunition. Eligible persons may apply for one free 20-round box of non-lead centerfire rifle ammunition per year — or one 50-round box of bullets for reloading, Burnett said.

In addition, each eligible person may also receive a non-lead rimfire (.22 LR or .17 HMR) upon request, depending on availability.

To apply for the free non-lead ammunition, contact VWS by email (nonlead@ventanaws.org) and provide choice of caliber and a scanned copy of your California driver’s license. Visit www.ventanaws.org for additional details on applying for non-lead ammo.

Executive Director Sorenson said in an email that “Most people are fine with switching to non-lead ammunition, if they can just find it with ease.” The key, he said, is for non-lead ammo “to be more readily available for the people who need it most from a condor perspective.”

“(To) all hunters and ranchers in high condor activity areas, if you need non-lead ammunition, please let us help you get it,” Sorenson added.

As of December, 91 Condors are flying free in Central California; another 100 condors are in the air in the rugged canyon country of northern Arizona and southern Utah, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Worldwide, more than 500 condors are riding the thermals, producing chicks, and offering conservationists reason to believe the future will be promising for the species.