Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library.
Contributed by Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley.
| www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Transcription
ORNIA CONDOR
Eben McMillan
15 August 1963
the pine tree and once landed it seemed undecided as to
which limb to take or which foot to use. It's size can
be noticed easily. I doubt that it would weigh within
3/4 the weight of the adult birds. Its head and neck were
much smaller and its tarsometatarsus were much smaller
than that of the adults.
Returning from inspecting the Cow carcass, that had been
fed on quite heavily from the rear end, I stopped near the
Shooting Site -
Tall pine in the flat about 200 feet west of the Cow carcass.
From this spot, with a good rifle, I could have shot
and killed anyone of six Condor that perched well
within shooting range of a deer rifle. One adult bird
and the Young 9 could have been reached easily with a
small caliber rifle.
The employee of the Farnsworth's came into the area
at 8:45 A.M. and fed the cattle in this valley. He was
within 400 yards of all the Condor perched in the canyon
with the exception of the adult that had flown from the carcass and
perched in the pine tree to the west. His calls to the cattle
resounded throughout the canyon. His pickup truck clanked
and roared as he moved about with the heavy load of feed.
No Condor flew while he was there.
At 9:10 A.M. Buzzards began leaving the canyon, in
which the Cow carcass was, and in which they had looted. They
came out in numbers of 8 or 10 at a time, circled up out
of the canyon and flew out to the West and North.
Two adult Condor flew down-canyon and joined
a flock of circling buzzards at 9:20 A.M.; A 3rd
Condor adult joined them at 9:25 A.M. These three
circled up and flew out of sight to the South. As these three birds
left the area a fourth Condor came from its roost at 9:28
A.M. and commenced circling as the Young Condor flew down
canyon and joined it at 9:30 A.M., while the 6th and 7th