California Condor

Gymnogyps californianusOrder: CICONIIFORMES Family: Vultures (Cathartidae)

Codes: Common Name: CACO Scientific Name: GYMCAL ITIS Taxonomic No.: 175274

Related Birds

Bald Eagle
Osprey
Turkey Vulture
Zone-tailed Hawk
Black Vulture

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Overview

California Condor: Very large raptor with black body, bare-skinned red-orange head, and white wing patches. They can soar for longs periods with minimal wing movement. Locates carrion with its keen eyesight, can survive several days without food. Has the largest wingspan of any North American bird.

Range and Habitat

California Condor: Found in arid foothills and mountain ranges of southern and central California; requires large areas of remote country for foraging, roosting, and nesting. Condors roost on large, old growth trees or snags, or on isolated rocky outcrops and cliffs.

Topo Map: Hawk-like Body

Listen to Call

Voice Text

Hisses, growls, and grunts.

Interesting Facts

California Condors gorge themselves on several pounds of food in one sitting to sustain them until they find their next meal.

The skin on the bare head of an adult bird turns a deep red-pink during courtship or during times of alarm.

They can only make hissing or grunting noises because they do not have vocal cords.

A group of condors are collectively known as a "condo" and a "scarcity" of condors.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

California Condor

● Song: Hisses, growls, and grunts.

● Foraging & Feeding: California Condor: Prefers large carcasses, such as deer, cattle, and beached marine mammals, but readily feeds on smaller carrion. Leaves roost to begin foraging late in morning, after strong thermals form, often returning to a known carcass.

● Breeding & nesting: California Condor: A single pale green or blue egg is laid in a shallow cave or rock crevice; no nesting material is added, but the pair may manipulate rocks and other objects to form a crude nest. Incubation ranges from 54 to 58 days and is carried out by both parents; produces no more than one brood every other year.

● Similar species: California Condor: Bald Eagle juvenile is noticeably smaller, has brown belly, long tail, and shows long head and neck projection in flight.

Flight Pattern

Soars for long periods with minimum flapping of wings

● Range & Habitat: California Condor: Found in arid foothills and mountain ranges of southern and central California; requires large areas of remote country for foraging, roosting, and nesting. Condors roost on large, old growth trees or snags, or on isolated rocky outcrops and cliffs.

^BreedingMonogamous, Mates for life

^PopulationEndangered in limited range in U.S.

^MigrationNonmigratory

^Weight356.8 Ounces

Hawk-like Body

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America