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The Condor Cave Flights, camera, action! The stage is set to watch a wild condor nest develop from hatch to fledge. We take the term ‘birdwatching’ seriously.

For several years we have observed condor nests in Southern California to address some of the most serious threats facing chicks and fledglings. Due to this effort, we have been able to identify and address various threats to chick development and California condor nesting success has soared. Now, we invite you to join the action. Using impressive technology, a lot of planning, and some creative thinking – we were able to bring you the first wild California condor nest camera! It all started with one camera in 2012; at that time we introduced video clips of female #79 and male #247 raising their chick, #654, from its start inside the egg until its first flight from the nest cavity. In 2013, #79 and #247 nested again in the same cavity, making our lives easy! This allowed us to utilize the original nest camera and share video footage of this pair raising another chick in the spotlight. We also installed an additional nest camera in female #147 and male #63's nest at Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge. Condor Cave followers had the opportunity to share in the excitement of seeing this pair's first chick, #712, fledge from its nest in early November. So stay tuned…every year we will post video clips, photos, and information about current breeding activity and condor nests in Southern California. Get involved, ask us questions, and learn about the incredible recovery effort for this endangered species.

10/22/2026

What is this curious sensation?! California condors react to the first drops of rain. These five young captive bred California condors will be released into the wild next week. So far all our recently released birds have been doing great - perching in trees, coming back to the pen for food, and exploring their big new world.

Video by USFWS

Video description: California condors on perches in a flight pen hold their wings out and flap them energetically in reaction to gentle raindrops. There are carcasses visible on the ground and the field beyond the pen is dry grass, with a grey sky behind. Rain is audible.

Happy fun fact, fun photo(s), and not-far-from-fledgling Friday!Our Pole Canyon chick is a hop, skip, and a jump away fr...
10/16/2026

Happy fun fact, fun photo(s), and not-far-from-fledgling Friday!

Our Pole Canyon chick is a hop, skip, and a jump away from taking that all-important next step to condor adulthood aka flight. So what does a chick do to get there? Well, it hops, skips, and jumps of course!

Just like a runner preparing for a race, condor chicks need to build the muscles they'll need to not only sustain them in flight, but aid in the all too crucial take off and landing as well. They build those muscles by hopping and flapping their wings inside it just outside their nest cavities. Some nest cavities offer a good space for this, while others...let's just say the chicks get a bit creative with how they stretch their wings.

Check out the Pole Canyon chick's acrobatics as it prepares itself for eventual flight!

Photos courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

09/29/2026

California condor chick #1456, cleared for takeoff! 🛫

Well... maybe not quite. At 145 days old, our Pole Canyon chick is getting closer to fledging, but it will likely be a few more weeks before it takes the plunge. Most condor chicks fledge around 5.5 - 6 months old. This little one probably has a few more weeks of hopping, flapping, and yearning for the void left to go.

Video by Molly Murphy, Santa Barbara Zoo courtesy of US Fish and Wildlife Service

Video description: An untagged California condor hops, flaps, and bounces around on the porch of its cliffside nest. There are tufts of green and yellow grass on the porch and in the background.

09/23/2026

Comin’ out of my cage and I’ve been doing just fine!

Today we released two captive-raised California condors into the wild! After acclimating in our flight pen for a few weeks, these birds have been deemed ready to graduate. The field crew will be watching them closely as they ride their first thermals, choose their first wild roosts, and generally figure out how this whole wild condor business works. They are already receiving a warm - if curious - welcome from the rest of the flock. We wish them good luck and favorable winds!

Video by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Description: A young condor wearing two blue wing tags sits on a perch in a large rectangular cage. The door is open. It looks around, hops to the ground, and flies out into a grassy field beyond. Outside the cage is a carcass and many ravens. In the distance mountains are visible.

We don't know about you, but seeing the leaves changing color, shorter days, school starting, and pumpkin spice everythi...
09/18/2026

We don't know about you, but seeing the leaves changing color, shorter days, school starting, and pumpkin spice everything 🎃 - it can really only mean one thing...

Condor chicks are ready for their 120-day health checks!

Recently, the Condor Crew hiked out to one of the remote nests in Southern California to give the chick its four month health check. We are happy to report that the chick is doing well and minimal trash was found in the nest. During the health check, biologists were able to take blood samples for genetic analysis, sexing, and to test blood lead levels. The chick also received a West Nile virus vaccine and was checked for any potential trash in its digestive track. The entry crew also sifted and removed trash from the nest, and finally, they placed a wing tag with one of the newer lightweight patagial tracking devices so that we can continue to track this little one after it makes its next VERY important step - flight!

Dad, #856, was very interested in the process and perched at the edge of the cavity during the workup. Mom, #976, was circling and perched nearby as well. They were happily reunited when the crew packed up and left. We are continuing to monitor the chick and will be observing it for signs of its first flight over the next two months.

Way to go team!

09/04/2026

This week we welcomed ten young California condors to our flight pen at Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge! These birds were carefully raised in captive breeding facilities at the Los Angeles Zoo and the Oregon Zoo. They are all about a year and a half old. After a few weeks acclimating in our flight pen, they will be released into the wild and will give a vital boost to our flock’s population. We’re so excited to have them! Huge thanks to the captive breeding programs who make this possible.

Video by Diego Bisbal

Video description: A biologist opens a large crate and a California condor with a blue tag with a white 61 hops out into a large flight pen.

Hate to burst the bubble everyone, but this is not a condor and a baby condor... (it's a condor and a turkey vulture) He...
08/27/2026

Hate to burst the bubble everyone, but this is not a condor and a baby condor... (it's a condor and a turkey vulture)

Here in California we have the distinct pleasure of having two native vulture species, California condors (of course!) and turkey vultures. Turkey vultures are much more widely spread, ranging from Canada all the way down to the tip of South America and they are much more prevalent, with global population numbers in the millions.

Turkey vultures are about half the size of California condors, with a distinct reddish head. Watching their flight, they are much more unsteady in the air than a condor and while California condors have a distinct white triangle on the leading edge of their wings, turkey vultures have a light gray band on the trailing edge of their wings.

Condors do love their turkey vulture friends though, as one of the only birds in the world with a proven sense of smell, turkey vultures are able to "sniff" out the best carrion on the landscape. With their keen eyesight, condors can spot congregating turkey vultures consuming carrion and "invite themselves" over for dinner.

Photo by Martin Fletcher.

California condors agree: there's nothing like a cool, refreshing creek dip on a hot day. Deep in a rugged and isolated ...
08/18/2026

California condors agree: there's nothing like a cool, refreshing creek dip on a hot day. Deep in a rugged and isolated canyon, far underneath a protected cliff nest, we found these meandering California condor tracks leading to a perfect swimming hole.

Photos by Amy List, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

08/14/2026

Hungry, hungry chick!

The Pole Canyon chick is now three months old and is really starting to make the transition into adulthood. Now is the time when we start seeing the gray down feathers being replaced by the black adult feathers that will eventually carry this little one aloft. This is when we also start seeing behavioral changes such as more time spent outside the nest cavity. Adults, such as the sire seen here, encourage this by enticing their chicks outside for a "tasty" meal.

Video by Molly Murphy, Santa Barbara Zoo, courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Video Description: The video starts with a view of a cliff, chaparral dotting the sides, nest cavity in the middle. An adult condor stands just outside the cavity facing towards the viewer and a three-month-old condor chick comes out flapping its wings and walking towards the adult for a feeding session.

Who's that there, lurking in the cave? It's a California condor chick, of course! We were happy to see two of this year'...
07/29/2026

Who's that there, lurking in the cave? It's a California condor chick, of course!

We were happy to see two of this year's four nestlings doing well last week. Despite the south-facing aspect of their caves and the soaring temperatures in Southern California, they seem to be hanging in there and hiding out in the shade as much as possible. Imagine your only water source being regurgitated meat!

Photos by Dave Meyer, Santa Barbara Zoo

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Ventura, CA
93003

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Wednesday 9am - 4pm
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