Topa Topa’s story began in early 1967, the year that the California condor was classified as endangered by the United States. He was found weak and malnourished in the mountains of Ventura County — weighing only 17 pounds. Fred Sibley, leader of the USFWS Endangered Species Program, and John Boreman at the Audubon Society, captured Topa Topa and the Los Angeles Zoo became his home.
He was the first California condor to live in a zoo, where zoo experts say Topa Topa “contributed to the production of roughly 300 birds over his lifetime, with 100 participating in the present-day recovery program as mentors or breeding condors, and 94 still flying free in the wild today.”
“When I think of the California Condor Recovery Program, Topa Topa is one of the first things that comes to mind,” said Rose Legato, Curator of Birds, L.A. Zoo.
“The plight of the California condor really began to resonate with the public around the same time Topa Topa was brought to the Zoo in the 1960s,” Legato said. “It’s beautiful to see how much he has contributed to the recovery of the species and how far we’ve come. His story is not only a celebration; it is a reminder of the critical work we still need to do to fully save the California condor.”