3 California Condors die of lead poisoning



I was sad to see they had three California Condors die of lead poisoning and three more had taxic levels in their bloodstream.
California Condors are sacred birds to the Native Americans of the west and were determined to be almost extinct in the 1970's with only one or 2 dozen left in the world. A captive breeding program was begun and in 1992 the birds were being re-introduced into the wild. Scientist are not sure why they almost died off, but the birds do not begin reproducing until they are between six and eight years old. There are still only an estimated 127 in the wild and mortality rates are still high, especially around developed areas with powerlines.
Check out the story here.

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