PERUVIAN CONDOR SKIN

It’s one of the only predators that can break the hard guanaco skin with its beak alone.

In certain seasons of the year (October in Peru), the Andean condor flies from the peaks of the Andes to the Pacific coast to eat sea lion carcasses and discarded placentas.

Its chicks stay with its parents up to 2 years before facing the world alone. This bird is monogamous and both parents incubate the egg.The Andean condor is part of four national shields, where it represents different values: Bolivia (boundaryless pursuit), Chile (strength), Colombia (liberty and order), and Ecuador (power, grandeur, and valeur).The distance between the points of its spread wings (~3.3 meters) represents the largest wingspan of any terrestrial bird.Its name in quechua is kuntur and the Incas believed it was immortal- it represented the Jananpacha, the upper world of the sky and future.This map will allow us to identify condor habitats that superpose with communities, extractive activities, infrastructure, protected areas, and other land uses, as well as with different threats and actors that need to be taken account of in the creation of a national plan of action for the conservation of this majestic bird. In Peru, in addition to providing technical support to the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation in its conservation initiatives, we have also been analyzing data to create a preliminary map of condor distribution in Peru and Bolivia, based on observations entered on Cornell University Lab of Ornithology’s eBird platform and reported in interviews held by WCS staff. We work to establish a baseline to understand its historic and actual threats, and to identify the gaps in the information necessary for its conservation which will allow a prioritization of high quality research initiatives.

The Andean condor lives in the entire Andean region, which allows us to use our strategic position in each member country to develop regional initiatives.

The practice of strapping the bird to bulls in bull-fights during the Yawar Fiesta, and climate change only exacerbate their already vulnerable situation. Its sporadic attacks on livestock have contributed to its poor public image, and, as a consequence, there have been illegal carcass poisoning events. As a bird with natural small populations, a wide distribution range and low reproductive rates, the viability of its populations are a true concern. For example, the Incas considered it the immortal representation of the Jananpacha: the upper world, sky, and future. Since ancient times, the Andean condor has been an important part of the Andean mythology and traditions. Its distribution range spreads through the Andean countries of Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, from the north of Colombia to the extreme south of the Chilean and Argentine Patagonia. It is around 142 cm tall and its wingspan can reach 330 cm. It has a long lifespan, comparable to humans, with up to 50 years in the wild, and up to 80 years in captivity. It also has evolutionarily importance due to its sense of smell, unique in its genus and unusual in the bird kingdom. By quickening the decomposition rate of dead animals, thus diminishing the risk of disease associated with the slow rotting of cadavers. The Andean condor ( Vultur gryphus) has an important ecological role as a scavenger.

Peruvian condor