Endangered California condor killed near Grand Canyon

An endangered California condor was shot to death in northern Arizona on Thursday.

The bird, one of about 70 in the Arizona-Utah region, was part of a fragile population narrowly saved from extinction in the 1980s, when zoos captured all that were left in the wild and launched captive breeding programs.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service special agents and Arizona Game and Fish Department law-enforcement staff were investigating the condor's death on the Kaibab Plateau. The person who shot the bird reported the incident, according to the agencies.

It is illegal to kill, harm, pursue, trap and harass endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. The maximum penalty for the criminal violation is $50,000 and one year of jail time. But unintentional killings may carry a fine of up to $1,000, said Chris Tincher, spokeswoman for U.S. Fish and Wildlife.

California condors shootings are rare, but humans harm them by leaving lead fragments in carcasses, poisoned bait and trash in their habitats, which includes the Grand Canyon, Tincher said.

The birds are highly curious scavengers and like to pick up pennies or other objects dropped by tourists, said Lynda Lambert, spokeswoman for the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

California condors are one of the largest land birds -- with a wing span of about 9½ feet -- and are one of the oldest. They descend from a prehistoric bird, and their kind once flourished from Canada to Mexico, across the American South to Florida and even along the East Coast.

But now there are only three populations left: in Arizona and Utah; California; and Baja California.

Habitat destruction and hunting had drawn their entire population down to just 22 birds left in California in the 1980s. Zoos captured them, bred them, and have steadily introduced them back into the wild.

Part of their struggle is that California condors take a long time to reproduce compared to most other wild animals. They do not sexually mature until about age seven and they court each other for a while before trying to mate. They typically stay with their mates for life, Lambert said.

The birds only lay one egg every two years and they stay with their young for about 18 months, Lambert said.

"So many people look at them and think they're quite ugly," Lambert said. "But they do such an amazing service to the land. When you have road kill or an animal that dies ... they are the ones that clean up. If you didn't have that, think about what your land would look like."