[at-l] On the birds and nature subject

[Slyatpct at aol.com (Slyatpct@aol.com)]

Speaking of birds and nature...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060329/ap_on_sc/condor_nesting

Calif. Condors Spotted Nesting in Big Sur
 
BIGSUR, Calif. - For the first time in more than 100 years, Californiacondors 
were spotted nesting in the northern part of the state,scientists said.

The condor couple was found Monday displaying typical nesting behavior inside 
a hollowed-out redwood tree in Big Sur, a mountainous coastal region south of 
Monterey, the Ventana Wildlife Society said Tuesday.

"For the past 10 years when this sort of thing came up, it turned out to be 
just in my dreams," KellySorenson, the group's executive director. "Now it is a 
reality."

The male and female took turns guarding the nest every two or three 
days,never leaving the nest unattended for more than several minutes, the scientists 
said.

"Although the view into the cavity is verylimited and we can't actually see 
the egg, we strongly suspect they have an egg based on their behavior at the 
nest site," said JoeBurnett, a wildlife biologist.

Scientists have worked for years to bring the condor back from the brink of 
extinction.

Ventana,a nonprofit group, began releasing condors into the wild in 1997 and 
now monitors a population of 38 condors in Central California.The last known 
condor egg in Northern California was collected in 1905 in Monterey County.

The condor recovery effort has increased the number of birds tenfold over the 
past two decades. But about 40 percent of released condors have died from 
attacks by golden eagles and powerlines, among other causes.

Biologists said the mortality rate of condors in Big Sur is much lower.