Condor Webcam

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
October 21, 2013

Oakland Zoo and Ventana Wildlife Society Install First
California Condor Webcam in the Wild

Big Sur, CA – On October 17, 2013, Oakland Zoo and Ventana Wildlife Society will turn on the first ever LIVE streaming webcam to monitor California condors in the wild. For more than a year, teams at Ventana Wildlife Society, Oakland Zoo, CamZone, and FedEx have strategized how to secure funding for the camera and install it into a remote area of Big Sur, California, only accessible via a treacherous service road. The months of hard work paid off in the end. As of today, field biologists and the public are now able to see the largest North American land bird up-close from the convenience of their desktops.

“We at Oakland Zoo are thrilled about this project,” said Nancy Filippi, Managing Director at Oakland Zoo. “There was a time when we honestly didn’t know if installing this camera would be possible. It took nearly a year of trouble shooting with phone companies and local wireless support, traveling to Big Sur to survey areas, and working diligently with CamZone to make this happen. We are invested in educating the public about California condors, and this camera is an outward display of our conservation mission.”

This webcam will become a vital tool to Ventana Wildlife Society as it will allow wildlife biologists to zoom in on birds, check tags, look for signs of medical issues, and easily monitor what is happening. Prior to having the webcam, biologists had to drive an hour and a half to the Big Sur location to check in on the birds. Now, they are able to cut three hours out of that process and can simply move the camera with remote access from their office computers.

“This new webcam allows viewers to see condor conservation through the eyes of the dedicated biologists who are trying to save this bird in the wild”, said Kelly Sorenson Ventana Wildlife Society’s executive director.” Funding generously donated by FedEx and a camera powered by Camzone, the public can now regularly observe California condors in the wild – an opportunity that was never possible until now. The webcam is accessible for viewing on the Society’s website http://www.ventanaws.org

VWS’s website is linked to the right, in my list of links. One of the better uses of technology.

And this is one of Dan’s, taken the old-fashioned way by staking out -sometimes for hours or days to get that shot!