- Whoa.
Did you see that?
It just flew right over my head, it's huge.
Every time it flaps you could just hear the wind and noise.
Okay, we got one cornered.
(dramatic music)
- [Narrator] To encounter a California condor
soaring wild today, hear the rush of wind
as it effortlessly glides by,
follow the shadow it casts on the landscape
with it's nine-foot wing span and be reminded
that at one point not too long ago,
a sight like this would have been impossible,
for the California condor almost crossed
an irreversible threshold that all species dread,
extinction.
To learn about the plight of the largest flying land bird
in North America, we're heading to the state of California,
the namesake of the species.
Our adventure starts in the bustling city of Los Angeles.
- This landscape is vastly different
than what condors used to see when they used to fly
in this habitat, this was their former range,
now it is what you see in front of us,
it is a city of four million people,
and of course, people, sky scrapers, urban sprawl
does not mix with a prehistoric bird,
like the California condor.
As we navigate the traffic and congestion of the city,
it's hard to imagine how vastly different
this landscape once was.
If we go back in geological time
to the late place to scene, the cars would be replaced
with herds of mammoths that were stalked
by saber-toothed tigers and short-faced bears.
And looking down on this scene
would have been the California condor.
In order for the condor to thrive today,
it requires vast open expanses, nesting cliff faces
and, of course, food in the form of large carcasses.
As time has passed, the resources in this area
have decreased due to high demand
for agricultural and land development,
which ultimately led to the steep population declines
of these prehistoric birds.
We are on our way to meet up with U.S. fish and wildlife
service biologist Molly Astell,
who is working at the Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge
on the California condor program.
We're gonna be helping Molly and her team
workup some of these condors
that they actually have in flight pens.
The program that we're going to be working with today
is responsible for saving the species.
So what does the term workup mean?
I will help catch a number of different condors,
assist in pulling biometric data
and, lastly, we will do an overall health assessment
before the birds are released back into the wild.
And we have arrived at
the Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge.
After meeting Molly, I immediately noticed
a large flight pen and that is when I spotted
my first condor.
This is officially the moment where I've seen
my first California condor.
The the flight pen is a structure that biologists
use to safely trap birds and temporarily house them
while doing important check-ups.
With several birds in the flight pen
needing to be worked up and released,
Molly had to give me a crash course
in the proper handling technique of condors.
And then I was ready to enter the flight pen.
We immediately became engulfed in a frenzy of condors
as they flew over us, swiftly avoiding capture.
It's a huge bird, every time it flaps
you could just hear the wind and noise,
picks up the dirt.
Whoa.
Did you see that?
It just flew right over my head, it's huge.
You gotta keep your head on a swivel,
just flying everywhere.
It might look chaotic, but the team paid close attention
to the birds and worked fast and efficiently
to reduce any stress.
Okay, we got one cornered.
They're huge.
Molly quickly netted the first bird
and then got it ready for me to hold.
Here you go.
And the condor is free of the net.
- So we'll go over to the chair
and I'll hand this guy over to you.
- All right, so next step is
I'm actually going be holding this condor
as we actually do the work up, so I'm taking off this GoPro.
All right, so like this?
- Yep. - There we go.
- There we go.
- Feels solid.
- I'm holding a California condor,
it is a solid bird.
Right now my left hand is holding the head secure.
What's very noticeable on this condor
is that large number tag that's on the wings.
And that's very distinct in order for the biologist
to get a quick look and know exactly
what condor they are looking at.
With a bird in hand, it was time to collect the biometrics,
it appears healthy, which means
it's ready to be released back into the wild.
All right, here we go.
The condor was considered functionally extinct in the wild,
when biologists captured the last remaining bird
in 1987, to bring into captivity
for an intensive breeding program.
The world population at the time
was only 22 California condors,
today, thanks to the management efforts,
the total number is rising,
with close to 500 condors in existence.
However, the species still faces several challenges
and remains critically in danger.
One down and several more condors to go,
so we're gonna put this GoPro back on
and we're gonna go ahead
and get our next vulture for the workup.
Each time a condor was worked up,
it allowed us the opportunity to get a closer look
at the amazing features of these prehistoric birds.
So I'm looking at the feet of the condor,
you'll notice that the talons are not super sharp,
this is not a bird that actually has to grip prey items,
so actually they're used more for walking
and stabilizing the bird.
- If you guys can see the tongue,
can you see those barbs on it at all?
- [Mario] Yeah, I can.
- So it kind of grabs the meat with that
and then it pulls its tongue in,
kind of like ratcheting that meat in.
- So chomping. - It's really cool.
- Just kind of gripping that flesh, rotting flesh
and just swallowing it down.
Oh wow.
So birds have what's called their crop
and that's an area where they could actually store food,
instead of just gorging themselves,
so that'll actually fill up with food.
Each bird is fitted with both GPS and VHF transmitters.
Now, the transmitters over the years,
I'm sure they've become more advanced.
- [Molly] Pretty much every bird with this
has their own cellphone number.
- [Mario] During the workup process,
each bird receives a full health assessment
and an assortment of biometrics are taken.
- Three, two, one,
everything looks good.
- [Mario] Got nice tail feathers.
- [Molly] Got nice tail feathers.
- All the ladies are gonna be looking at your tail feathers,
don't lose 'em.
I lose my tail feathers sometimes.
Actually, I lost some of my head feathers.
(chuckles) That's why I wear a hat.
- Yeah.
(laughs)
Okay, so I would say the easy part is holding the bird,
now I'm going to participate in taking blood from the bird.
I'm gonna poke this bird,
I apologize if it gets angry.
But there is a process, we're gonna,
of course, take a blood sample
because this is the most important part of this workup,
is getting that blood sample
to determine if there're any high
or elevated levels of blood.
High levels would indicate the bird
is ingesting lead contaminants from the environment.
One of the most common ways of ingestion
is from the presence of spent ammunition fragments
found in the carcasses left behind by hunters,
the birds utilize this easy food source
and over time develop blood poisoning,
which can have deadly results.
All right, thank you sir.
With several birds successfully released,
Molly assigned me a final task,
net one of the last birds on the list,
an adult male that was known to be a bit feisty.
If you think I'm ready I'm gonna give it a shot.
- I think you're up for it.
- All right, let's go in there, get the last bird.
It's an adult?
- It's an adult.
- [Mario] All right, I think I'm ready.
740 is the last one for us to capture.
He knows what's up, he keeps going up, avoiding Dave.
(sentimental music)
- [Molly] You ready Mario.
You got him!
- All right, we got 740.
We got the bird in the net
and we gotta get the bird out of the net.
- Yeah, and you can start by getting that tail out.
Cool.
That's a great start.
You're gonna go underneath the net there
and take over on the beak.
- How's that?
- That looks awesome.
And you're gonna go over that leg, perfect.
And then grab that other drumstick.
Then you got the bird.
- I got the bird.
Oh boy. - Nice.
- So there you have it, number 740, we finally got him,
the last bird we needed to workup.
And it's an adult.
The way we know it's an adult is look at that head,
look at that striking coloration,
and of course that bold head.
The juveniles have some feathers on their head
but as they mature they lose all the feathers
and they get this nice pinkish-orange coloration to them
which is the classic California condor look.
And they eye is red and around the eye
you've got that beautiful, yellowish hue to the skin,
very striking coloration, it's definitely distinct,
looking into the eyes of a California condor.
All right Molly.
- Cool. - Let's get going
with the processing, right?
- Sounds good, yeah.
- Okay.
After completing the workup and determining that this bird
was healthy, the next step was to release this big male
back into the wild.
As I prepare for the release,
I could feel an incredible anticipation,
both in myself and in the bird.
The condor tensed up and began to flex its wings,
ready to take off.
And as I let go, a few large flaps launched it
up into the air.
I watched in amazement as the enormous bird
seemed to effortlessly glide off into the distance,
a sight that we can never lose again.
Every species has its purpose in the world
and is tightly bound to an intricate flow of energy
that, if disrupted by human actions,
can quickly spiral into the extinction of a species.
California condors are new world vultures
and play a vital role in the ecosystem
as nature's cleanup crew,
consuming carcasses that can harbor bacteria and disease.
As a biologist, I am inspired by the tireless dedication
that Molly and her team have given
to protecting the California condor.
And I feel it's a responsibility we all share
as stewards of our planet.
If you want to learn more or get involved
with condor conservation,
click on the links in the video description below
to ensure that this prehistoric bird continues to soar
into the future.
If you thought these birds were incredible and huge,
check out an even bigger bird, the cassowary
and some of our other favorite feathered friends.
And don't forget, subscribe
and click the notification bell,
so you can join me and the crew on our next adventure.
(dramatic tone)
(animal sounds)