Save the Date: 2025 California Condor Release on September 27

We’re excited to announce the details of the 2025 California Condor Release at Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in Arizona! Held in conjunction with the Bureau of Land Management, the event has been an annual fixture on National Public Lands Day for over 20 years. This year’s edition will take place on Saturday, September 27 with the release pen doors opening at 12pm MDT (11am MST, northern Arizona Condor Time).

 “It is always exciting for us to have the opportunity to share our work with the public on National Public Lands Day,” said Tim Hauck, our California Condor Program Director. “It is a reminder of the tremendous comeback by this once nearly extinct species and the hard work and dedication of those who have fought, and those who continue to fight, day in and day out to ensure we reach our ultimate goal of recovery. Now more than ever, it is a time to celebrate our public lands and the diversity of species, like the condor, that rely on these open spaces.”

This year, five California Condors will take to the skies for the first time after being hatched and raised in captive breeding facilities. This year’s cohort of condors being released in Arizona comes from the Oregon Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, marking the first time in several years that none of the birds come from our own propagation facility in Boise. Why? In late July, all eight release-ready immature condors from Boise were transported to Northern California by the Yurok Tribe and the Northern California Condor Restoration Program. These birds will be released into the Northern California flock in late August, adding important genetic diversity to this newer subpopulation. 

As in prior years, this year’s release will feature an in-person event at the condor viewing site in the valley below the release pen and a livestream of the release through our YouTube channel. The livestream will have multiple cameras trained on the release pen and will include videos and interviews with the condor biologists and conservationists who work with these massive birds! Viewers can also have their questions answered live by members of both our propagation and condor field teams. View the livestream event here, and subscribe to set a reminder and make sure you don’t miss out. The stream will start at 11:30am MDT (1:30pm Eastern / 12:30pm Central / 10:30am Pacific), a half-hour before the release.

Those attending the event in person will have the opportunity to talk with condor biologists and ecosystem managers, learn about the birds and their habitat, and enjoy a festival-like atmosphere while waiting for five condors to take their first flight from the Vermilion Cliffs. In-person activities kick off at 9:30am local time, an hour and a half prior to the release.

More details about the livestream and in-person event can be found on the event webpage.