Unmanned aerial systems (UAS, drones), have become a popular and widely accessible tool for managing wildlife. They are particularly useful in monitoring wildlife in remote locations, such as the California Condor. The Santa Barbara Zoo and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have implemented a program to utilize UAS to improve Condor management efficacy, particularly considering continued range expansion resulting in new and widespread nesting territories. The location and orientation of some nests make it difficult or impossible to see inside the nesting cavity, making UAS critical to the success of nest checks and confirming chick health. UAS are also useful for birds that are unable to carry GPS units, as tracking nest attendance would otherwise necessitate long visual observations. The goals of this program are to develop a standardized method for monitoring the California Condor population using UAS to increase remote nest monitoring, and to increase efficiency of nest checks while minimizing behavioral effects. We are investigating flight initiation and behavior change distances through visual observations during flights. Preliminary results indicate that Condor behavior is not affected while flying at a distance of >100 ft from the nesting cavity.

Molly is a California Condor biologist at the Santa Barbara Zoo and works in conjunction with the USFWS on the Condor Recovery Program. She has worked on the program for two years and recently assisted in started a drone program to monitor nesting condors. She is a licensed drone pilot with four years of experience monitoring wildlife via drone. Before working with condors, she worked with northern elephant seals in San Simeon, CA while obtaining her master’s degree.