Come Witness The Release Of North America’s Largest Flying Land Bird

Three endangered California condors will be released to the wild in the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in northern Arizona at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24. The public is welcome to observe the release from a viewing area where spotting scopes will be set up, and experts will be available to answer questions.

California Condor

This will be the 17th public release of condors in Arizona since the recovery program began in 1996. Condors are hatched and reared in captivity at The Peregrine Fund’s World Center for Birds of Prey in Idaho, Oregon Zoo, Los Angeles Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park and transported to Arizona for release to the wild.

70 Fly Free

Currently, 70 condors are flying free in the Grand Canyon region. The world’s total population of California condors is 399, with 198 of them gracing the skies of Arizona, Utah, California and Mexico. Condors were reduced to just 22 individuals in the 1980s when a program was started to save the species from extinction.

Condors were first reintroduced in Arizona in 1996 and conservation efforts are funded in part by the Heritage Fund, a voter-passed initiative that provides funding for wildlife conservation with revenue from Arizona Lottery ticket sales.

Recovery and reintroduction cooperators include The Peregrine Fund, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Directions To View

To view the condor release, drive north on Highway 89 out of Flagstaff. Turn left (west) onto Highway 89A toward Jacob Lake and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Drive about 40 miles past Marble Canyon until you turn right onto House Rock Valley Road (BLM Road 1065). Travel about three miles to a shaded viewing area on the right. On top of the cliffs to your east will be the location where the condors are released.

Arizona Boating & Watersports/Western Outdoor Times
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