The last of the three California condor chicks to be laid and hatched in the wild since 1984 has been found dead in its nest cave in the Los Padres National Forest near Fillmore, California on October 21. The cause of death is yet to be determined. The first chick hatched May 11 was found dead October 4, the second chick hatched April 11 was found dead in its cave on October 13. The latest chick found dead was hatched April 28.
After the first two chicks were found dead biologists concentrated their efforts on getting a visual of the last remaining chick, who they had only seen a handful of times due to the remote location of the nest cave. Dr. Allan Mee of the Zoological Society of San Diego, who has been monitoring condor nesting behaviors since January, discovered the latest death as well as the second.
Still recovering from a long and difficult 2 day hike to recover the second chick
