The mango-sized egg incubating in a cave on the North Side of Pittsburgh is rare, valuable and incredibly important to the survival of the Andean condors that soar above the mountains of South America.
The egg was laid at the National Aviary on April 7 by 35-year-old Lianni and is expected to hatch between June 6-9. A new web cam has been installed so people can watch the progress.
The female Andean condor has produced four chicks in the past, and three of them were released, when grown, into the wild in Colombia and Venezuela.
But Lianni’s last chick was born at the Pittsburgh aviary in 2009 with her partner, Rhodan. After he died, Lianni made it clear that she did not like any of the male condors that were presented to her by the people who run the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Species Survival Plan.
While 32 North American zoos have Andean condors, only the National Aviary and the San Diego Zoo have fertile eggs this year, said Kurt Hundgen, director of animal collections and programs at the North Side facility.
Andean condors are very picky about who they will breed with, he said. In fact, zoo matchmakers have to watch carefully, because the 25-pound birds can be very aggressive and “will hurt each other” if they don’t like each other.
Lurch, 48, the father of the new egg, was brought to Lianni from San Antonio, Texas, in 2017. It was not exactly love at first sight, but staff and visitors saw Lurch and Lianni frequently engaging in courtship behaviors — they continuously spread their wings and touch each other’s bills and other parts of their bodies, Mr. Hundgen said.
“Right now Lurch is the most genetically valuable male condor in the North American collection,” Mr. Hundgen said. “His offspring are crucial.” There are three of them at other facilities.
“With Andean condor populations in decline, every chick that hatches is important,” said Cheryl Tracy, National Aviary executive director.
The aviary also has a third condor, but it is not part of the breeding program.
The largest flighted birds in the world, Andean condors have 10-foot wingspans. They are vultures whose diet in the wild is primarily dead animals.
The National Aviary’s breeding program is part of a global effort to save Andean condors. Their survival status is “threatened” throughout the Andes Mountains region of South America and “critically endangered” in Ecuador, where scientists believe there are only 150 of the big birds.
The National Aviary “is delighted to share the anticipation and wonder of the chick’s arrival” with a nest cam, Ms. Tracy said.
Go to http://aviary.org/condor-nest-cam to see live streaming of Lianni and Lurch taking turns sitting on the egg, which is in a nest tucked inside a 4-by-6-foot cave. Lianni’s head is bald, while Lurch’s head is topped by a crest.
The nest and cave in an outdoor enclosure are hidden from the view of aviary visitors.
When the egg hatches, the chick will stay in the nest for about three months, but will be visible on the nest cam.
The Condor Court habitat was redesigned in 2015 to give the birds cliffs and caves that closely mimic the natural habitat in South America.
Linda Wilson Fuoco: lfuoco@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1953.
First Published: May 17, 2019, 11:00 a.m.
Updated: May 17, 2019, 11:59 a.m.
