Emergency Avian Influenza Appeal
The Imminent Threat to Condors
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In early April 2023, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), also known as Bird Flu, was announced as the cause of death for three California condors in northern Arizona.
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Within a month, 21 condors in that population had died.
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The virus has not yet been detected in the other condor populations in California and Mexico, but has been detected in other wild birds.
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The ongoing Avian Influenza outbreak represents an imminent threat to all of the California Condor populations.
The Immediate Response
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On May 16, 2023, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced their approval of an existing vaccine for use in California Condors. Since then, partners have completed successful vaccine trials - first on black vultures, then on captive California Condors.
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The vaccination of the California Condor population has begun, first with the captive flocks and now with the wild flocks - a truly challenging endeavor made even harder by the loss of a safe, free food supply.
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Friends of California Condors Wild & Free is raising funds for the for the purchase of clean, safe food for trapping and observing condors.
The Ongoing Need
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For the last 30 years, the California Condor Recovery Program at Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex has been able to use an entirely free supply of naturally deceased calves from dairies in Kern County as a food supply.
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Now, due to the spread of HPAI in dairies throughout California and its detection in dairies in Kern County, the Program has now lost its sole source of free food.
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Maintaining a stock of carrion is essential for the Condor Recovery Field Team to conduct management actions on and off Refuge lands, including:
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Lead monitoring and treatment
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HPAI surveillance and vaccination
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Survival and mortality monitoring
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Monitoring habitat and resource use
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Nest monitoring and management
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Release of captive-bred condors
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Condors must be trapped from the wild to collect biological samples to test for lead exposure, which is the main threat to their survival. Bait food is needed to draw the birds in to catch. When trapped, condors are swabbed and vaccinated for HPAI, they have radio and GPS transmitters placed or replaced, and they receive identifying vinyl tags to aid in visual observations.
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The Program receives condors bred from captive rearing facilities every fall to help bolster the wild population. Prior to release, these individuals are held in a large flight pen for minimum of 3 weeks to acclimate to new surroundings, meet wild birds, and then released into the wild.
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As these are young, naïve condors, the Field Team places carrion at feeding stations near the release site for easy first meals in the wild while the newly released condors gain confidence flying and integrate into the wild flock.