• Preface-- Acknowledgments-- Chapter 1. GIANT SCAVENGERS-- Chapter 2. FOOD AND MOVEMENTS-- Chapter 3. BREEDING BIOLOGY-- Chapter 4. THE HISTORIC DECLINE-- Chapter 5. WHAT CAUSED THE HISTORICAL DECLINE? EARLY HYPOTHESES-- Chapter 6. STUDIES OF THE DECLINE IN THE 1980s-- Chapter 7. HISTORICAL CONSERVATION EFFORTS-- Chapter 8. CAPTIVE BREEDING-- Chapter 9. RELEASES TO THE WILD-- Chapter 10. CONDOR CONSERVATION IN A CHANGING WORLD-- Literature Cited and Bibliography-- Photo and Art Credits-- About the Authors-- Abstract-- Index.
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)9780520242562 20160528

The story of the California Condor - an awe-inspiring symbol of wilderness - is one of the most dramatic and contentious in conservation biology. Huge scavengers with wingspans reaching more than nine feet, Condors declined by 1985 to just nine individuals left in the wild. At that point, under a highly controversial program, the last birds were brought into captivity to create a population that could eventually be reestablished in nature. This engaging book, written by two scientists who were intimately involved with the Condor conservation effort, tells the full story of the California Condor, from the bird's evolution and biology to its captive breeding and subsequent releases, and its uncertain future. It introduces the largest soaring bird in the continental United States to a broad audience and at the same time presents an important case study of a critically endangered species.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)9780520242562 20160528