The State : 2nd Condor Chick Hatches

A California condor chick hatched at the San Diego Wild Animal Park, bringing the endangered bird’s population to its highest level in more than 20 years, a park official said. The chick was the second in the last month to hatch at the park in Escondido. Its arrival raised the condor population to 30 for the first time in two decades, said Tom Hanscom, a park spokesman. A third hatching is expected soon from an egg laid at the Los Angeles Zoo and transferred to the Escondido park, Hanscom said. The latest hatching is part of a captive breeding program designed to save North America’s largest land bird from extinction. All California condors known to exist are in captivity--16 at the park and 14 at the Los Angeles Zoo.