April 15, 2026 | Abbi Duhart | News Editor
The week of April 6, seven California condor chicks were hatched in the Oregon Zoo’s Jonsson conservation center.
The Jonsson Center is located in Clackamas County and has enough space to hold 90 condors, including 16 breeding pairs. The conservation center is 52 acres and is isolated away from human contact to prepare the condors to be reintroduced into the wild.
Since late January, the condors there have been laying eggs and, in turn, laying the groundwork for the species’ recovery from being critically endangered. Additionally, more eggs are expected to hatch soon.
After the condors lay their eggs in the conservation center, the eggs are moved to an incubator to stay safe until they are ready to hatch. After this, the baby chicks will stay with their parents until they are around 18 months old, then moved to a pre-release pen. Here, they will be acclimated to a wild habitat before being released into the wild in California or Arizona.
Young condors being raised in pre-release pens are prepared for release into the wild by receiving aversion training, such as learning not to land on power lines, and will learn how to socialize with adult mentor condors.
California condors are one of the original animals listed as part of the 1973 Endangered Species Act, and are currently still listed as an endangered species. According to the Oregon Zoo, there were only 22 California condors left in the wild in 1989. The zoo has been working to increase their population, and now there are around 600 California condors, with about 370 flying free in the wild.
The Oregon Zoo hopes that, in helping the species recover in California and Arizona, the condors will naturally expand their populations back to Oregon for the first time in more than a century.
California condors play a vital role in ecosystems because they recycle nutrients and dispose of dead animals. Condors are scavenger birds that eat dead animals, which can collect bacteria and transmit disease, meaning they are crucial in preventing disease outbreaks.
Condors are endangered because their food sources and habitats are both increasingly contaminated. The biggest danger to them is lead poisoning, as their prey is often shot with lead bullets; when condors eat animals with lead in them, the lead can enter their bloodstream and become fatal.
To combat this, the Oregon Zoo launched the Lead-Free Hunting Education Program in 2015, where they work with hunters, ranchers and wildlife agencies to encourage the use of lead-free alternatives such as copper ammunition. This change protects all scavenging wildlife, not just California condors, but, as long as lead is commonly being used, condors can’t reproduce fast enough to remain stable.
Despite this, the Oregon Zoo is optimistic about the California condor population as it slowly increases. Nicole LaGreco, the overseer of condor recovery efforts at the zoo, said, “Things are looking great for the season so far. All seven chicks are eating and sleeping well in their nests. They’re tiny now, but they’re already growing quickly and learning from their parents.”
Those who are interested in learning more about California condors can see the exhibit located in the Great Northwest area at the Oregon Zoo.
Contact the author at howlnews@wou.edu
