New Baby Condor About To Hatch, National Aviary Sets Up Web Cam
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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- People have been going wild over nature web cams, which focus of wild animals and their young, and now there's a new one being set up here in Pittsburgh.
You've seen the Eagle Cam, the Falcon Cam, the Giraffe Cam; but now, make way for Condor Cam.
The National Aviary is giving everyone a glimpse into its Andean Condor nest.
Lianni, the Aviary's 34-year-old condor, has laid an egg with her partner, Lurch, the 47-year-old first-time father.
Their egg is due to hatch sometime between May 16-22, and everyone is invited to witness the hatching and watch the little bird of prey grow up.
"Once the egg hatches, hopefully, we'll be able to see some feeding behavior from Lianni feeding the chick," said Teri Grendzinski, the supervisor of Animal Collections at the Aviary. "Then, as the chick gets bigger, we'll hopefully be able to see the chick on the camera."
Our Andean Condors, Lianni and Lurch, have produced an egg! You can watch Lianni incubating her egg live by tuning in to our Condor Nest Cam! Can you catch a glimpse of the white, mango-sized egg when Lianni gets up to stretch? Watch live: https://t.co/7ds8BCIjF5 pic.twitter.com/JrDS69hBTa
— National Aviary (@National_Aviary) May 9, 2018
While bald eagles build their nests high in trees, condors prefer caves, so a cave has been incorporated into Condor Court at the National Aviary.
"In the wild, when they actually breed, they nest in little caves in the mountains. So the exhibit was designed with a little cave built in, and that's exactly where Lianni decided to nest. In the cave, like she would in the wild," said Grendzinski.
Andean Condors are rare and a lot of work is taking place to protect the species.
"The Andean Condors across their entire range are threatened, but where they live in Ecuador, they are critically endangered," Grendzinski said.
In fact, Lianni has been a mom to four other chicks in the past, who have gone on to boost the condor population.
"Three were released into the wild in South America, and one is in a conservation center in Florida as part of the species survival plan," said Grendzinski.
Now, some might say condors aren't the most attractive birds.
"They have the bald heads because of what they do in the wild," Grendzinski. "They're nature's clean-up crew. They're scavengers, they eat dead things. And they have the bare heads so the stuff that they're eating doesn't get stuck to their feathers."
And the folks at the Aviary say just wait until you get a look at their baby.
"I think condors are very cute, and baby condors are even cuter," Grendzinski said. "So it will be super exciting when we get a baby, and people get to see it on camera."
To watch the Aviary's Condor Cam, visit their website at this link.