Sisquoc is an experienced father.
We’re excited to offer a unique view into a California condor’s nest via our new Condor Cam. I’d like to share a bit of information to help you enjoy what you’re seeing and how to tell “who’s who” on the Cam. If you have any questions about what you’re seeing, feel free to ask them in the “Comments” section at the end of this post, and we’ll do our best to provide answers.
The male condor in this pair is named Sisquoc (pronounced “SISS-kwawk”), and he is wearing yellow wing tags (#28). The female is called Shatash (pronounced “shah-TAHSH”); she is not wearing any wing tags. Sisquoc is the largest California condor at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, weighing in at 25 pounds (11 kilograms). He is visibly larger than Shatash.
At 2 weeks old, Sisquoc was fed by a keeper wearing a condor puppet.
Sisquoc was the first California condor ever hatched in a zoo (his egg was laid in the wild and brought to the San Diego Zoo for incubation). He emerged from his shell on March 30, 1983, and news of his hatching triggered an outpouring of mail from all over the world. Congratulatory letters were sent by conservationists, zoos, governments, school classrooms, and many individuals, all wanting to help with the condor project. And look at him now—time flies, doesn’t it?
Shatash hatched at the Los Angeles Zoo, one of our partners in the condor recovery program. Her father was the first condor to hatch at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park (again, from a wild-laid egg), back in 1985.
Sisquoc and Shatash have been paired together since 1993. This is their 21st egg. Fifteen chicks have hatched, and Sisquoc and Shatash have raised six of them themselves. The other chicks were raised by keepers who used a condor puppet so the chicks wouldn’t imprint on their human caretakers. Sisquoc and Shatash have proven to be great and reliable parents.
California condors tend to be monogamous and share ALL nest duties: incubating the egg, brooding the chick, feeding the chick, and defending the nest. Throughout incubation you will see Sisquoc and Shatash take turns sitting on the egg to keep it warm. You may see them roll or turn the egg periodically. This gentle egg movement is crucial for the development of the growing embryo.
Incubation bouts can be very short: just a few minutes or birds can sit for two or three days, so don’t be alarmed! Sometimes the parents will sit together in the nest. Condor eggs incubate at about 98 degrees Fahrenheit (36 degrees Celsius). Their egg was laid January 12, 2012, and we are expecting it to “pip,” or start hatching, after 55 days of incubation, around March 7, 2012. We can’t wait!
Ron Webb is a senior condor keeper at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
clicked on condor cam today, but it is not focused. Please focus the camera
Moderator’s note: We’ll see if it can be adjusted.
most interesting. . .where is the nest at Condor Ridge? I visit there often but don’t know where to look.
Moderator’s note: The nest box is located in our off-exhibit “condorminium” complex at the Safari Park. The only way you can see it is via our Condor Cam. We hope you’re enjoying this unique view into a condor nest!
I have thought for years the low number of CA. Condors was 27. Elsewhere in this newsletter it was said the low number was 22.
What was the lowest number of CA Condors?
Moderator’s note: In 1982, only 22 birds remained in the wild.
It is fantastic the way you care my lovely Condors, I appreciate so much your wonderfull work, in my country we can se them flying , but I am sure they cannot reproduce themselves in the way they do, under your care
Yours Truly
Dra Susana Zabala
We have been watching the condorcam for several weeks now. Usually one of the proud parents is sleeping when we peak in on them, but we have been able to watch a little movement. Today we were rewarded with getting to watch the parent get off the egg, and we saw the egg for the first time! What concerns us is that 15 minutes have now gone by and the egg is still uncovered. Is that usual??? Also, when do you anticipate putting the real egg back?
Condor Team responds: Based on previous observations before we started the Condor Cam, we learned that from time to time the condor pair leave the egg unattended. This is one of the nesting aspects we learned when we started the breeding program at the Park. The pairs in the wild also exhibit this behavior. We’ll put the real egg back sometime in March.
You and your students are getting to see nesting activities that people have not been able to see previously. Enjoy!
Thank you so much for answering our questions… we were VERY excited to get such a rapid response … MANY thanks. We are counting the days to “Pipping” and hope the new chick will be viewable thru the Condor Cam!!! Will you be posting on the site when the eggs have been switched???? It is snowing here… can California Condors live in snow?
Condor Team responds: We will certainly let you know when the egg switch occurs so that, we hope, you can watch the chick hatch! And yes, condors can survive in the snow. At the Sierra San Pedro de Martir release site in Baja California, Mexico, the condors see snow every year. It’s quite beautiful.
Today is the 5th and you predicted the 7th. Will you replace the egg before it begins to hatch or after. Also, how do you do this without the birds becoming agitated?
Condor Team responds: On the day the egg pips (when the chick begins to break the egg shell), the egg will be transferred. This isn’t considered hatching. The hatch is when the chick emerges from the egg completely. We will transfer the egg at the first sign of the pip stage. We will wait until both parents leve the nest. This happens periodically when they go for a drink of water or food. Keep an eye out! And be sure to enter our “When Will the Egg Hatch? contest:
Do you have a name picked out for the arrival to be? Also, how do you choose names for them?
They’ve have recently capivated me, and really are beautiful birds. Thank you for helping to save these wonders! Hope to catch a glimpse of a condor on my first visit to the park in April!
Moderator’s note: You are so welcome, Jen! Stay tuned for more information about naming the chick.
Has the egg pipped yet?
Are you on PIP watch now? What if the the chick pips when the staff is not there? Thank you
Hi! I truly enjoy the condor cam! I was just wondering if the camera makes any type of noise because the female condor seems to look up in the direction of the cam quite frequently as if she is wondering what it is. I can’t wait to find out when the egg hatch. I know you all are excited as well! Thank you for allowing us to learn and experience this journey with you.
The cameras have small cooling fans, but they are very quiet. We tested the Condor Cam for noise before condor breeding season to make sure it wouldn’t be too loud for the parents. Sometimes the nesting condors respond to other sounds inside the facility, like condor neighbors flying in the flight pen next door, keepers cleaning pools, etc. We try to keep work in the facility to a minimum during nesting season. Also, the movement of the camera itself can catch the condor’s eye, so we try not to move it too often or too quickly.
To say that my class is expectantly waiting is an understatement! We had to have the condorcam on all day today, and during periodic moments someone would blurt out, “LOOK!!!!” when there was “action” going on. They are very curious as to whether signs of pipping have started and how we will be notified that the egg has been switched. To say that you are impacting a group of kids is an understatement. Thanks for this wonderful opportunity!
Moderator’s note: Stay tuned, kids! More to follow very soon.
How are you able to fool the parents that this is a real egg when you place the fake one in the nest? And has this pair ever been allowed to keep their egg the entire time?
The fake, or “dummy,” egg is a wooden egg with a weighted rod inside, so it weighs as much as a real condor egg (approximately 270 grams). Our Safari Park Paint Department color-matched the wooden egg to look like a real egg, a very pale, green-white color. The brooding – or nesting – behavior is so strong in both the male and female condors, they don’t discern the difference between their own egg and an egg that is slightly smaller or larger.
Sisquoc and Shatash have incubated their own egg to hatch in the past. We prefer to artificially incubate all of the eggs now so we can more closely monitor their progress. If an egg needs some help, we can be of more assistance if the egg is not under some very large and protective parents. Usually, the parents do a great job with their own eggs, but we are just trying to eliminate any X-factors.
Will you be making video’s of the egg in the incubator as it starts to pip or perhaps you could direct us to video’s of previous eggs hatching?
I just found you this year and can hardly wait to watch the young condor grow up. This is so exciting. Thank you for sharing with all of us.
This egg will hatch in a nest and not an incubator, so the best way to see it will be to watch Condor Cam. However, to give you an idea of what pipping looks like, you can see video from a few years ago that talks about the pip, hatch, and rearing process of a hand-raised, or what we call a puppet-reared, chick. The difference, of course, is that we will not need a puppet for the chick you will be seeing on Condor Cam since the parents are doing all the work.
I can’t believe my good timing. I just saw an egg switch! Was that THE switch that begins our countdown to a little chick?
Moderator’s note: You were indeed one lucky viewer! Let the countdown begin.
I just want to know if the camera is fixed or does it have ptz capabilities? Thank you.
The camera has ptz capabilities. This will enable us to reposition the camera and zoom in for better views of the chick.
Hi. I was under the impression that once there’s a pip in the egg, the parents no longer roll it. I thought I just saw the egg being rolled. Can the eggs still be rolled even after the first pip?
The parents will continue to roll and manipulate the egg during the hatching process. You will see the parents moving around a lot more now while they are incubating the hatching egg. This is in response to the movement that they can feel occurring within the egg. The chick can also be heard vocalizing from inside the egg; this also stimulates the parents. As the chick pushes against the interior of the shell, it rotates inside the egg, breaking shell as it does so. The parents may remove small pieces of broken shell during this process. Once the top or cap of the egg is pushed off by the chick, the parents may help the chick more by removing the capped shell or even pulling the bottom of the eggshell off the chick.
Thank you for your response. I’ve read your information on the hatching process (wonderful detailed info, by the way!) but I just didn’t realize it was still safe for eggs to be rolled during the process. It’s fascinating!
Moderator’s note: We hope you continue to enjoy watching this wonderful event on Condor Cam!
Hi – love this cam! I missed the actual hatching – will there be a video posted to see it? Thanks for this fascinating cam!
There has been comments on the San Diego Zoo Global Facebook page concerning Shatash’s behaviour toward Sisquoc since the second day of the chick hatching, she seems to not want him near the chick to help in the feeding or care. From all some of us have read we were under the impression both parents take turns in these areas is her behaviour at this time normal or just what happens during the first few days or so?
Condor Team responds: The behavior being observed is normal for this species. Condor parents often squabble over who gets to care for the chick. Some people have indicated that Shatash seems to be doing most of the work, but what we know is that there is a bit of pattern for when each parent has its turn rearing the chick, so in this case it may very well be that Sisquoc is doing more of the night shifts that you can’t see. We don’t blame him for not wanting to take the night shift!