Los Angeles Zoo sets record with 17 California condor chicks hatched in 2024

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A record 17 California condor chicks have hatched during this year’s breeding season for the endangered birds at the Los Angeles Zoo. Officials say Wednesday that all the chicks will be candidates for release into the wild as part of the California Condor Recovery Program. Zookeepers say the 17th and final bird of the season hatched in June and is thriving. The previous record was set in 1997 when 15 California condor chicks hatched at the zoo. The recovery program’s goal is to propagate the iconic bird that decades ago was on the brink of extinction from habitat loss and lead poisoning.