This project will implement a priority action for california condor (gymnogyps californianus hereafter, condor)recovery addressing the critical issue of lead poisoning in free-flying condors

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) awarded the California Department of Fish & Wildlife $608,130 on July 1, 2025, under the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CFDA 15.615) to implement a comprehensive California Condor (Gymnogyps californianus) recovery initiative addressing lead poisoning from spent ammunition—the primary cause of mortality in the wild population, accounting for 48% of attributable deaths. The two-year project, scheduled for completion on June 30, 2027, delivers integrated mitigation services through community outreach, scientific research to determine exposure pathways, and increased non-lead ammunition availability. Project deliverables include expanded outreach specialist positions throughout California, community education campaigns targeting ranchers and working landscape managers in condor scavenging areas to promote non-lead ammunition adoption, awareness initiatives addressing the impacts of lead on California Condors and other wildlife, and enhanced support for tribal and state lead ammunition ban compliance. The project also includes expansion of the Rimfire Round-Up web tool to assist the public in accessing non-lead ammunition options.

Ventana Wildlife Society, a non-profit conservation organization specializing in California Condor recovery efforts, serves as the primary sub-grantee under this award (sub-award date: April 30, 2026). As an established partner in the condor recovery program, Ventana Wildlife Society contributes specialized expertise in endangered species restoration, conducting field-based research and implementing collaborative recovery initiatives essential to reducing lead poisoning threats to the approximately 560-member condor population, which is federally endangered, state-protected, and designated as a protected cultural heritage species by the Yurok Tribe.

Condors are designated as both afederally and state endangered species, fully protected in california, and as a protected cultural heritagespecies by the yurok tribe (yurok 2019, yurok 2020). With a small population of only 560 condors, lead poisoning is a significant risk. Lead poisoning from spent ammunition has been identified as the primary cause of mortality among free-flying condors and accounts for 48% attributable deaths in the wild (united states fish and wildlife service (USFWS) 2024 figure 1). Despite significant efforts by partners in the condor recovery program including ventana wildlife society (VWS), more work is needed to reduce the lead threat. The primary purpose of the project is to mitigate lead poisoning through a comprehensive approach involvingcommunity outreach, scientific studies to elucidate exposure pathways, and increased non-lead ammunitionavailability.outreach activities will reduce the amount of lead ammunition in the environment by raising awareness andeducating communities about the impacts to wildlife and human health . The project team will do this by increasing the number of non-lead outreach specialists working throughout the state to conduct outreach and organize special events. Education will increase awareness of the threat of lead and its impacts on condors and other wildlife, while improving understanding and acceptance of non-lead ammunition and enhance compliance with existing tribal and state lead ammunition bans. Outreach will focus on developing relationships with ranchers and other working landscape managers in areas where condors scavenge to promote use of non-lead ammunition during the course of routine operations (e.g., ground squirrel and other varmint control) expanding the rimfire round-up webtool, which assists the public in locating non-lead ammunition and increasing the supply of non-lead ammunition within the condors range via working with partnering ammunition vendors to host incentive events and support reduced pricing on rimfire ammunition, and by direct purchase and provision through engaging in outreach events.complementary research activities will help illuminate lead poisoning exposure pathways by conducting newresearch and expanding upon prior results. The project team will track the free-flying population of condors incalifornia with global positioning system (GPS) transmitters, identify locations suggestive of feeding events, monitor for lead contamination events or compromised condors, and inform outreach specialists to concentratetheir efforts in these areas. During routine condor health exams, the team will conduct beak swabs (bourbour etal., 2019) to collect environmental DNA (edna) and perform edna metabarcoding to determine species consumed. This project also includes research to update and expand the published lead isotopic database on lead-based ammunition (finkelstein ET AL., 2012) to enhance characterization of isotopic signatures of current lead-based ammunition used in california measure lead isotopic compositions of tissues (e.g., blood, liver, feathers) collected from condors to examine spatiotemporal trends in their sources of lead exposure and investigate correlations between a condor s recent diet (determined by edna) and its lead exposure risk. This project will implement a priority recovery action by expanding and improving efforts to reduce the threat oflead to condors and support recovery of the species.