The Sunday, 23 March 2008, "Oregonian" (Portland, Oregon, pages O4-O5) carried a long piece on California condors and the captive breeding program at The Oregon Zoo. Birds produced at The Oregon Zoo are being used to supplement the experimental condor population near the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The article, "Wings over the West," was subtitled --
It's a good question, and one I think is ripe for asking seriously, now. The captive breeding programs have been very successful, and the world population of California condors is near 300. Reintroductions have already begun in most of the logical areas that had populations of condors after 1900. A number of groups and individuals have begun to explore the possibility that condors available in the near future might be put back into habitat once occupied in northwestern California, western Oregon, or perhaps southwestern Washington.
To forward the discussion, I've updated and expanded upon my 1973 paper, "The California Condor in the Pacific Northwest" [Auk 90(1):196-198]. I've included details of all the Northwest records I've been able to find; I've summarized the available records geographically and seasonally; I've taken my best shot at a hypothesis concerning the former status of condors in the Northwest; and I've conjectured about when and why they disappeared. I've given some preliminary thought to locations for California condor reintroductions in the Pacific Northwest. Later, I will present some thoughts about the mechanics and socio-politics of condor releases that may be useful to reintroduction planners.
Feel free to contact me with questions or comments. I'd really like to see this effort get organized.