Condors are giant birds found only in the Western Hemisphere. Two species are recognized : the California Condor of North America, and the Andean Condor of South America.
The Andean Condor is the largest flying bird in the World by combined measurement of weight and wingspan. It has a maximum wingspan of 3.3 m / 10ft 10in. Able to fly about 200 km in a day, the bird has the option to travel from coast to highlands or switch countries in a matter of hours. The bird depends highly on up-draughts and uses uses especially those which occur along the cliff faces and in canyons, near the rocky walls.
The California Condor has a maximum wingspan of 2.7 m / 9 ft. and soar over the deserts to the seacoast.
The Condors spend most of the time in the air, soaring in thermal currents. They rarely perform flapping flight in order to save energy. they can be seen in small groups or in pairs, waiting for thermals. When they take off, the large wings catch the rising current and the birds soar between the high rocky walls in gorges and ravines, playing with the friendly wind. The female often joins him and together wait for up-draughts, spreading their wings seeming to dominate their territory.
Both birds' head and neck are nearly featherless, and are a dull red color, which may flush and therefore change color in response to the bird's emotional state. Unlike most birds of prey, the male is larger than the female.
Because it takes Condor parents more than one year to raise a young Condor, the rate of reproduction is extremely low: usually one young, on average, every two years.
The Andean Condor is found in the Andes Mountains and adjacent coasts of the Pacific Ocean of Western South America. The majestic bird is regarded as the very Spirit of the South American Andes.
Its huge wings give to the bird a unique ability to glide, making it appearing as a quiet guardian in the sky, above the high peaks of the Andes.
The Andean Condor is an iconic animal because it represent the link to our cultural past. It is a national symbol of the Andes and considered sacred and as such it plays an important role in the folklore and mythology of the Andean regions. In the Quechua and Aymara cultures, the bird is a symbol of the power of the sky. The Mapuche people call the bird "the King of Birds," and believe it embodies the four cardinal virtues: Wisdom, Justice, Goodness, and Leadership.
The Andean people do not hesitate to give the bird its religious significance, counting with the great longevity of the bird with a life-span of over 70 years. Some argue that the Andean Condor never dies because when it feels old the spirit of the bird reborn again.
The Andean Condor lives at elevations of up to 5,000 m / 16,000 ft, generally on inaccessible rock ledges.
Condors are carrion eaters. They lack the strong talons and beaks of hawks and eagles, and depend on finding carcasses for food. Where food is concentrated in small area, Condor foraging ranges are smaller. For example, on the arid coast of Peru, where the ocean washes ashore remarkable constant food supply of dead marine mammals and seabirds, some Andean Condors limit their foraging to stretches of beach several kilometers long.
They sometimes travel 160 km / 100 mi per day in search of a meal. They have never been known to attack a living animal. They will commonly gorge themselves when feeding on a carcass and may go days without eating. Their keen eyesight helps them locate food. They are also keen observers of other scavengers like Vultures, Eagles, and common Ravens.
Condors need three habitat requirements: 1) reasonable reliable winds of thermal upon which soar. 2) foraging habitat that is sufficiently open to discover and access carrion food. 3) adequate supplies of carrion.
North of the Peruvian city of Arequipa is found Colca Canyon. At 4,150 m / 13,615 of profundity, it is the World's deepest canyon. Traveling around it, one's eyes is filled with the beauty of the surrounding mountains, pastures, hot spring zones, rivers, and the most impressive bird, the Andean Condor, that reaches heights of up to 7,000 m / 22,965 ft.
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