It was known up until now only as California condor chick LA1720 (the serial number on its egg), and it wasn't supposed to survive.
The chick was upside down in its shell and in the wild, likely would have been stillborn because it couldn't have pecked its way out, but because this chick was lucky enough to be part of the Condor Recovery Program at the Los Angeles Zoo, it got a little help emerging from its shell from the amazing zookeepers and volunteers. The Condor Recovery Program at the zoo literally brought the species back from the brink of extinction.
Now, four months later, it's a 15-pound baby that eats healthy meals of dead rats and rabbits and waddles around flapping its wings attempting to fly.
Mike Maxcy, the zoo's curator of birds says the chick will remain part of their program for at least a year so it can gain strength and learn its pecking order among the other birds. Then the hope is that it'll be released into the wild.
So they launched an effort to give LA1720 a name, whoever got the most donations would be the winner.
Condor keepers at the zoo narrowed it down to four names and they asked you to vote for one.
The finalists:
Cali. Why Cali? Condor Keeper Chandra David said she chose 'Cali' as a name because "Living in California has allowed me to develop my passion for wildlife and fulfill my dream of truly making a difference to give this species another chance."
Wallace. Why Wallace? Condor Keeper Mike Clark says "Michael Wallace shared my interest in nature and birds and encouraged me to dig deeper...He was more of a mentor to me than anyone, even my own dad."
Timoloqin. Why Timoloqin? Condor Keeper Debbie Sears says "Timoloqin means 'to tell a story' in the Chumash language and it's perfect because so many people were drawn in by LA1720's story and learned about condors and the program."
Yurok. Why Yurok? Condor Keeper Jon Guenther says "For about 10 years, the Yurok tribe has been preparing to reintroduce the condor- a sacred bird- to their ancestral lands."
So the contest has ended...who won? Well, LA1720 is now known as.... Cali!
Congratulations Cali! Learn more about the Condor Recovery Program at the LA Zoo.