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Bluelens
climber
Pasadena, CA
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No worries about swooping condors, climbers. Condors are highly curious. If they cruise close to a climber, they're just checking out what's happening. All condor nests are monitored by volunteers or USFWS biologists. So, for now climbers don't need to worry about interrupting a condor in its nest cave.
They fly fast so you might only hear a whoosh before you realize what's just cruised your way. There are far fewer condors than peregrine falcons If you see a condor, count yourself privileged. These are magnificent creatures.
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HighTraverse
Trad climber
Bay Area
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Question:
Aren't all California Condors tagged?
You can see the tags clearly in Mungeclimber's pic on previous page. They are carefully monitored from egg laying to hatching. I thought they are all tagged as fledgelings.
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Bluelens
climber
Pasadena, CA
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Mar 27, 2015 - 08:25pm PT
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now with video! edited above post.....
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kaholatingtong
Trad climber
therealmccoy from Nevada City
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Mar 27, 2015 - 10:18pm PT
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So, I was out at the Emeralds today climbing, Emeralds up near Donner summit, belaying my partner, when I see this GIANT bird sort of buzz the wall she was climbing at. Got a really good luck at its underside, and a glance at its head. It had what I would estimate to be a 6 to 7 foot wingspan, and the colors exactly as seen in these pictures, with the hairless vulture head. And this shocked me however, because I didn't believe there are Condors in the area. I had my camera out and ready after this, but I never saw this bird again on this day unfortunately.
I guess I saw a big vulture?
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son of stan
Boulder climber
San Jose CA
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Mar 27, 2015 - 10:42pm PT
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Reality check.
Those birds know instinctively that spooking animals clinging to
cliff-sides can cause a fall resulting in death and a fresh meal.
They are not just curious. They want to kill you without getting hurt
themselves.
Eagles have been seen briefly grabbing goats then drop them to their deaths.
A condor shadow would startle any cliff dwelling rodent. Wouldn't know if
its a dangerous hawk. Condors playing the odds.
They eat your eyes first btw.
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Bluelens
climber
Pasadena, CA
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Mar 30, 2015 - 01:39pm PT
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Kaholatingtong, It's possible you saw an immature Golden Eagle. The immature eagles have some large white feather areas.
If not, you likely saw a Turkey Vulture (wingspan 5-6 feet). Same colors as condor, same pink/red, bare-of-feathers head.
The closest flock of condors to Donner in northern California are the Pinnacles birds. But they haven't taken any recent long flights toward Donner. This is known because half the wild condor flock has GPS transmitters (satellite data) or GPM transmitters (sends data via cellphone signal), and all wild birds have radio transmitters (except birds whose transmitter needs replacement due to feather molt).
All condors have wing tags with a number. The tag color indicates the year the bird was born.
Happy birding, climbers have the best view!
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kaholatingtong
Trad climber
therealmccoy from Nevada City
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Mar 30, 2015 - 01:58pm PT
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^^ Thanks for all the info blue, I am rather naive on the subject. It just caught my attention because I had recently visited this thread and the image of what the condor looked like was fresh in my mind.
And I agree. Climbers get the best views of birds, maybe someday I will have to learn a little more.
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john hansen
climber
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Aug 27, 2015 - 09:35pm PT
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The first time I saw a condor was in Zion. I did not know they were up there, they had found there own way there after being released further south. We were below the tunnel wall and I saw what I thought were turkey vultures. When I looked through the bino's I instantly said, California Condor. Nothing else it could be.
I since found out they show up there sometimes.
Another time on the south rim of the Grand Canyon I was walking the rim trail and saw one on a tower about 100 feet away. Thinking it was pretty cool I told the next people coming down the trail "hey there is a condor out there'.
They said" Oh yeah, there are two of them back at the lookout about 10 feet away"
I went back and a condor researcher was starting to shoo them away from where they were hanging out near the lookout.
Seems they do well in the Grand Canyon.
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Loven it
Thanks for posting the live feed
you can hear all kinds of birds singing in the backgroud
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Bluelens
Social climber
Pasadena, CA
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The chorus of unseen singing birds is a bonus track! Mountain spring piped into my city living room.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
You are watching a clip from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Condor Webcam, one of the first two webcams to stream live video of California condors nesting in the wild. The nestcam was installed last spring. The camera is live-streaming from near the Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in southern California. Another live streaming webcam managed by the Ventana Wildlife Society will broadcast from a remote area of Big Sur along the central California coast.
The egg was incubated as part of the California Condor Recovery Program’s captive breeding effort at Los Angeles Zoo, and replaced the California condor #111 and California condor #509 pair’s wild-laid egg that went missing in March. Biologists quickly mobilized to replace the missing egg with a dummy egg to ensure the male and female continued to incubate at the nest.
On April 2, the captive-bred egg was placed into the nest. The soon-to-be condor parents, 22-year-old female condor, California condor #111 and her seven-year-old mate, California condor #509, have been courting since fall of 2014, and hatched their first wild chick together in April 2015. Sadly, the pair’s first chick died from lead poisoning, a harsh reality of the man-made threat condors continue to face in the wild.
The Hopper Mountain NWR nest webcam was made possible through the financial and technical support of the following project partners: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Santa Barbara Zoo, Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology. Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund, and Friends of California Condors Wild and Free. The Big Sur nest webcam was made possible through the financial and technical support of the following project partners: Ventana Wildlife Society, Oakland Zoo and FedEx.
The California Condor is the largest bird in North America. These superb gliders travel widely to feed on carcasses of deer, pigs, cattle, sea lions, whales, and other animals. Pairs nest in caves high on cliff faces. The population fell to just 22 birds in the 1980s, but there are now some 230 free-flying birds in California, Arizona, and Baja California with another 160 in captivity. Lead poisoning remains a severe threat to their long-term prospects.
http://www.huntingwithnonlead.org/
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yo-so-mighty
Big Wall climber
salinas, ca
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An amazing photo taken by a friend who happens to be the resident biologist at the Pinns. This bird was approx 20' from my kids and I as we climbed at the High Peaks. An experience that I will always remember.
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tuolumne_tradster
Trad climber
Leading Edge of North American Plate
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is that a radio transmitter on the condor's wing?
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yo-so-mighty
Big Wall climber
salinas, ca
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Yes, my friend seemed well acquainted with them and said that this particular bird had a 9.7' wing span.
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yo-so-mighty
Big Wall climber
salinas, ca
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The same bird from about 100 yards away, after we were advised to shoo it away.
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Apr 14, 2016 - 08:35am PT
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Bump
Getting tired of having to search back so far
Check out the live feed of the baby condor one page back!
There have been studies done of the "feeling of being watched"
Pretty much it's a negative, you can't tell if you are being watched or not.
but it is something that I wonder about.
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Bluelens
Social climber
Pasadena, CA
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From the "Northwest Condor Watch" Facebook page.
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SuperTopo on the Web
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