Double fluff: Zoo welcomes first condor chicks of season

With more chicks expected soon, condor recovery efforts are off to promising start

The first two fluffy California condor chicks of 2025 hatched last week at the Oregon Zoo’s Jonsson Center for Wildlife Conservation, kicking off another promising year in the effort to save this critically endangered species.

“The new chicks are healthy and active, which is just what we hope to see,” said Kelli Walker, who oversees the zoo’s condor recovery efforts. “The parents are caring for them around the clock, and everyone is doing really well so far.”

Since mid-January, condors at the Jonsson Center have been laying the groundwork for species recovery one egg at a time. Several fertile eggs have been laid this year, and more chicks are expected soon.

The California condor was one of the original animals included on the 1973 Endangered Species Act and is classified as critically endangered. In 1982, only 22 individuals remained in the wild and by 1987, the last condors were brought into human care in an attempt to save the species from extinction. Thanks to recovery programs like the Oregon Zoo’s, the world’s California condor population now totals around 560 birds, most of which are flying free.

The Oregon Zoo’s condor recovery efforts take place at the Jonsson Center for Wildlife Conservation, located in rural Clackamas County on Metro-owned open land. The remoteness of the facility minimizes the exposure of young condors to people, increasing the chances for captive-hatched birds to survive and breed in the wild.

Upgrades and new equipment at the Jonsson Center have been made possible through continued support from Oregon’s Senators Merkley and Wyden, the Avangrid Foundation and donations to the Oregon Zoo Foundation, which supports the zoo’s efforts in advancing animal well-being, species recovery work and conservation education.

More than 120 chicks have hatched at the Jonsson Center since 2003, and nearly 100 Oregon Zoo-reared birds have gone out to field pens for release. Several eggs laid by Oregon Zoo condors have been placed in wild nests to hatch.