Siletz news /, January 01, 2016, Page 7, Image 7

Siletz Valley School Dee-Ni Students visit Oregon Zoo Condors
By Kathy Kentta, Healthy Traditions Project Coordinator
Pictured not in order: David Shepherdson Oregon Zoo, Leland Brown Oregon Zoo, Silet z Tribal Elder Shirley Walker, Nat ural Resour ces Com m it t ee m em ber
Heat her Walker, Dee- Ni I nst ruct or Joe Scot t , Cryst al Scot t , Ant hony But ler, Jonat han Herrm ann, William Whit ehead, Felisha Howell .
The Healt hy Tradit ions Program organized a field t rip for
Silet z Valley Ear ly College Academ y st udent s t o t he Condor
Breeding Facilit y at t he Oregon Zoo in Decem ber.
St ret ching 10 feet from w ingt ip t o w ingt ip, California con-
dors are t he largest land birds in Nort h Am erica and once
ranged from Br it ish Colum bia t o Baj a, California, and inland
t o t he Rocky Mount ains.
Hist or ical and scient ific evidence suggest s t hey once bred
in t he Pacific Nort hwest , yet t he California condor has not
been docum ent ed in Oregon for m ore t han a cent ury.
Condors play a cr it ical role in ecosyst em s by recycling
nut rient s and disposing of dead, disease- ridden anim als.
Known t o som e indigenous peoples as t hunderbirds, t hey
have long been rever ed by hum ans but during t he first half of
t he 20t h cent ury, t hey nearly becam e ext inct .
Pr ior t o visit ing t he Condor Breeding Facilit y, Healt hy
Tradit ions present ed in t he classroom about t he Oregon
Zoo Condor Sum m it s, educat ing t he public about t he zoo’s
ongoing capt ive breeding and release program .
Lead poisoning is t he single great est t hreat t o t he survival
of condors. When condors and ot her scavengers feed on t he
rem ains of anim als shot wit h lead am m unit ion, lead can ent er
t heir bloodst ream , affect ing t he cent ral ner vous syst em and
leading t o st arvat ion or predat ion in t heir weakened st at e.
Using lead- free am m unit ion spares scavengers a slow
deat h and provides a vit al seasonal food source ( gut piles) for
m any anim als.
Phot o by Tim Hunt ingt on Phot ography
My j ourney t o learn m ore about condors began in 2010 at
t he Oregon Zoo Condor Sum m it . I learned about Arizona’s
successful init iat ive w it h t he USFWS in t he Grand Canyon t o
reduce use of lead am m unit ion for hunt ing. This init iat ive was
necessary aft er condors had been poisoned aft er feeding on
t he gut piles of carcasses left in t he field.
Given t hat hunt ers care about conservat ion, t hey agreed
t o part icipat e in bagging t heir gut piles and exchanging t hem
for a free box of non- t oxic am m o. As anot her incent ive,
hunt ers who brought in t heir gut piles also were aut om at ically
ent ered int o a draw ing for a gift cert ificat e from a ret ailer
such as Cabella’s.
I n Novem ber 2015, t he Oregon Zoo host ed it s second
Condor Sum m it along wit h t he Oregon Chapt er of Wildlife
Societ y. This sum m it had present ers from t he Oregon Chap-
t er of Wildlife Societ y, Oregon St at e Univer sit y, U.S. Geologi-
cal Survey, Oregon Hunt er’s Assoc., USFWS and ODFW.
Recent research and findings were present ed by expert s in
t he field. Two am m unit ion com panies present ed t he hist ory of
am m unit ion and im pr ovem ent s in non- t oxic am m unit ion.
A represent at ive from USFWS present ed findings from a
prelim inary report on blood lead levels in golden eagle chick
populat ions in East er n Oregon. Lead is also one of t he leading
causes of chick m ort alit y.
Before long, Oregon Tribes should have t he chance t o see
condors in our skies. The Yurok Tribe in Nort hern California
and t he Nez Perce Tribe in I daho are wait ing t o be select ed
by t he USFWS as successful locat ions t o release birds. Bot h of
t hese Tribes are working hard t o part ner w it h governm ent
agencies, w ildlife organizat ions and ot her st akeholders.
I t will t ake a com binat ion of all t he st akeholders, including
Oregon Tribes and hunt ers, t o ut ilize t he Or egon Zoo’s educa-
t ional inform at ion provided t hrough it s condor exhibit and
out reach coordinat or, Leland Brown.
We as individuals have t he opport unit y t o be a leader in
ensuring condors can t hrive in Oregon. Hunt ers can do t heir
part t o prot ect condors from lead by burying carcasses and
t he rem ains of anim als shot wit h lead am m unit ion.
Condors Facilit y Senior Keeper Kelli Walker explains fact s regarding t he condor and
m onit oring t he condors and t heir hat chlings.
January 2016
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Siletz News
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