The Peregrine Fund is dedicated to improving the survival rates for the California Condor and increasing the number of condors. This is done through captive breeding and monitoring condors in the wild for lead poisoning and other threats to their survival.
The Peregrine Fund began breeding California Condors in 1993 at our facility in Boise, Idaho. After spending approximately 16 months at the facility, the young condors go to release sites in Arizona, California, and Baja Mexico. We established our release program in 1996 at Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona.
From a low of 28 surviving condors in 1987, a group of dedicated organizations including The Peregrine Fund has re-established a free-flying population now numbering 100+ condors from the Grand Canyon into Utah. We annually health-check every condor we can trap. In recent seasons, 87% of those trapped tested positive for lead exposure. The Peregrine Fund is playing an important role in advocating for lead-free ammunition used in hunting.
