MONTEZUMA COUNTY, Colo. — Colorado Parks and Wildlife said on Wednesday they are investigating after a critically endangered California condor was shot in southwestern Colorado in late March.
CPW said the bird was found about 24 hours after it was killed in a remote area northeast of Lewis, Colorado, and west of McPhee Reservoir in Montezuma County.
California condors "very rarely" enter into Colorado while moving between southeast Utah and Arizona, CPW said. The agency said they are aware of one of the birds coming into Colorado once or twice a decade. The most recent sighting CPW is aware of was in 2015 near Mesa Verde National Park.
Because California condors are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, it is illegal for anyone to harm, hunt, kill, capture or collect them, CPW said.
CPW said anyone involved in killing these birds could face a felony charge of wanton destruction of protected wildlife. If convicted, they could face prison time.
Anyone with information regarding the shooting is asked to come forward and help with the investigation. Tips can be submitted in the following ways:
- Colorado Operation Game Thief Hotline: 1-877-COLO-OGT (1-877-265-6648)
- Email: game.thief@state.co.us
- Website: Submit a Tip
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Tip Line: 844-397-8477
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Website: Submit a Tip
"At this time, previous leads have not yielded results, so CPW and the USFWS are asking the public for information regarding this incident and those who are responsible," CPW said in a news release.
With a wingspan of 9.5 feet and weighing up to 25 pounds, the California condor is the largest land bird in North America. CPW said the California condor population declined to just 22 individuals in the wild by 1987.
A recovery program led by the USFWS works to increase populations. As of June, there are 85 condors in the wild in the rugged canyon country of northern Arizona and southern Utah, CPW said. This number declined in 2023 due to impacts from avian influenza.
There are about 560 of the birds worldwide, CPW said.