IT TAKES THREE TO TANGO: COOPERATIVE BREEDING IN CALIFORNIA CONDORS | |||
| Danae Mouton; Ventana Wildlife Society; danaemouton@ventanaws.org; Joe Burnett, Kelly Sorenson, Alacia Welch, Erin Lehnert, Estelle Sandhaus, Arianna Punzalan, Catalina Porras, Nadya Seal Faith, Evan McWreath, Kara Fadden, Darren Gross | |||
Since their reintroduction to the wild in 1992, endangered California Condor (Gymnogyps californianus) populations have increased due to releases of captive-bred individuals and natural reproduction. Condors now nest across four subpopulations: Central and Southern California, Arizona/Utah, and Baja, Mexico. Most nests involve a male and female who share incubation and chick-rearing duties, but both polyandrous and polygynous nesting trios have been observed in the California and Baja populations, with all three adults contributing to incubation and chick rearing. From 2001-2024, 21 nest attempts by 13 trios were recorded, and 14 of these attempts occurred in the Central CA subpopulation. In Central CA, trios accounted for 9.2% of all nest attempts from 2011-2024. Despite perceived advantages in having an extra caregiver, nest success of trios was not significantly different than that of pairs. Individuals in trios were not closely genetically related, suggesting familial attachments may factor less in trio formation than indirect fitness benefits such as increased ability to maintain social status or increased breeding opportunities. Further research is needed to determine potential drivers of cooperative breeding in condors and to investigate reasons trios occur more frequently in certain populations. | |||
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