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Young California Condor Takes Flight in Arizona (continued) "A fledgling condor chick spreads its wings and flies into the wild, and not just the parents share in the pride. The partners who have worked for decades to rescue this species from the brink of extinction see it as a great cause for hope," said Interior Secretary Gale Norton. Three pairs of California Condors produced eggs in Arizona in 2003 (one in BLM's Vermilion Cliffs National Monument and two in Grand Canyon National Park). Two of the eggs did not hatch, which is not uncommon for California Condors during their early breeding years. In fact, this was the second egg laid by Condor 127 and the third laid by Condor 119. In California this year, one egg was laid and hatched in early May, but, unfortunately, the chick did not survive. "The significance of the first wild-hatched condor in Arizona is tremendous," said Arizona Game and Fish Director Duane Shroufe. "While captive-bred condors have exceeded our expectations, it is this chick and others like it in the future that ensure condor recovery in Arizona." The California Condor was included on the first Federal Endangered Species List in 1967. Excerpted from Joint Agency News Release Fire on the Mountain, Close Call for Condor Research Center Hopper Mountain NWR. Just one of many in the recent rash of wildfires that have spread through Southern California this Fall, a conflagration broke out west of Lake Piru in late October and ripped straight towards the Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge. The Piru Fire, which started on October 23, burned towards the "Refuge Compound" on October 26. A 70 year old ranch house and various outbuildings for additional housing and equipment storage, the compound serves as the base of operations for the California condor reintroduction and management in southern California. Fortunately, three U.S. Forest Service engine crews from Los Padres National Forest and Angeles National Forest set backfires in front and behind the Refuge Compound, successfully saving it from the flames. Biologists were not allowed to return to the Refuge full time until November 2 due to the continuing danger from hot spots, fallen power lines and falling trees. They were escorted up each day since Tuesday to take signals and put out food for the condors. "The condors seemed to have weathered the firestorm and are back to business as usual," said Marc Weitzel Project Leader for the Service's Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex. "We are extremely grateful to the Forest Service firefighters for saving our facilities." Before the field biologists were evacuated on Saturday, October 25, 29 condors were observed at the feeding site on the Refuge. The number of birds in the southern California range fluctuates as the Big Sur released birds integrate with the flock. There were 28 condors observed feeding Sunday, November 2 with only one southern California bird unaccounted for. There are 220 condors in existence, with 41 condors living in the wild in California, 37 in Arizona and five in Baja, and 137 in captivity at the Los Angeles Zoo, San Diego Wild Animal Park and the Peregrine Fund's World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho. The goal of the California Condor Recovery Plan is to establish two geographically separate populations, one in California and the other in Arizona, each with 150 birds and at least 15 breeding pairs. On a side note, the refuge was fortunate not to lose its new photovoltaic solar system that provides 100% of the power for its remote condor research station and for which the refuge received recognition in an energy conservation awards ceremony just days after the fire (see honors section for more award details). Excerpted from News Releases An unwelcomed visitor roared through the