Portland, United States - March 13, 2025 It’s an egg-citing time at the Oregon Zoo’s Jonsson Center for Wildlife Conservation, where endangered California condors have now laid 13 eggs — with the potential for more on the way. For critically endangered California condors, “every egg is a reason to feel hopeful,” experts say. “This season is looking very promising so far,” said Kelli Walker, who oversees the zoo’s condor recovery efforts. “Eleven different pairs of adult birds have laid eggs, some for the first time ever.” She revealed that condor pair 806 and 603 welcomed their first egg together last month. “It’s great to see these two birds lay an egg, and possibly become first-time parents,” Walker added. Since mid-January, condors at the Jonsson Center have been laying the groundwork for species recovery one egg at a time. Of the 13 eggs laid so far this year, at least nine are confirmed fertile. Care staff have removed some eggs to incubators, allowing certain condors to “double-clutch” and lay a second egg. Two pairs have already laid two eggs each. “How many eggs the condors lay is up to them,” Walker said. “But we’re doing everything we can to encourage the process.” The California condor, listed on the 1973 Endangered Species Act, nearly vanished with just 22 left in the wild by 1982. Today, thanks to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s recovery program, around 560 birds soar, many in the wild. The Jonsson Center, in rural Clackamas County, has hatched over 120 chicks since 2003, with nearly 100 released. Some eggs even hatch in wild nests. Upgrades at the center, backed by Senators Merkley and Wyden, the Avangrid Foundation, and Oregon Zoo Foundation donations, are boosting these efforts. With every egg, hope grows for this majestic species.