Why don’t the Zoo’s condors have names?
Rich: In the early years, researchers gave the wild birds number designations, like AC3 and AC9. When birds started being hatched in captivity, they were given numbers in the “Condor Studbook,” which tracks all the birds. The AC-numbered birds got new numbers at that time. The captive-born condors also got names from the Chumash language, which is the Native American tribe in this area. It can be confusing. Estelle: It gets even more confusing as every facility had their own numbering program, as did the release sites. It’s been standardized now with the Studbook. It is also much easier to identify a bird by a number than from a name. Try fitting “Preghawish” on a wing tag! The numbers contain information, for example they tell us the relative age of the bird. Rich: You know, these aren’t “our” birds, they are the Condor Recovery Program birds and ultimately belong to all Americans.
