With the announcement that the first California Condor chick to hatch in the Pinnacles National Monument in more than 100 years has been removed from its nest for treatment for lead poisoning, more attention will be focused on the dangers of lead in the environment, particularly lead from spent ammunition. Researchers from the Monument and the Ventana Wildlife Society, which have been monitoring the nest, announced yesterday that they had removed the 50-day-old chick from the nest for treatment of extremely high levels of lead in its system. The chick’s male parent was also evacuated for treatment. (photo by Gavin Emmons/National Parks Service)

“This news about the Pinnacles condors is just terrible, and it highlights the dangers that lead presents to condors and other birds,” said Gary Langham, Audubon California’s director of bird conservation. “The bottom line is that lead is a poison, and has no place in our natural environment.”

One of the biggest sources of lead in the environment is spent lead ammunition. California Condors frequently feed on animal carcasses left behind by hunters, and often consume great amounts of lead from ammunition. Audubon California was one of several groups that in 2007 successfully pushed for the passage of a ban on lead ammunition within the condor’s range. Audubon California is currently sponsoring a bill, Assembly Bill 2223, to ban the use of lead shot on state wildlife areas, because of the danger that presents to sensitive bird populations.