The Californian condor, Gymnogyps californianus, which is endangered, is the biggest bird in North America capable of flight. These condors feed on the carcasses of large mammals, including cattle and deer. Their numbers dropped to only 22 in 1982, which prompted the creation of the California Condor Recovery Program (CCRP), a captive breeding programme established in several zoos across the United States and Mexico. Because the captive breeding programme has been successful, there are now more than 300 condors. Many of these birds have been released as part of the programme.
(a)[4]
Outline the benefits of captive breeding programmes such as CCRP.
(b)[2]
Suggest why animals in captive breeding programmes may not always breed successfully.
(c)[2]
Once animals bred in captivity are released, their survival rate is low. Suggest two reasons why many of these animals are unable to survive in the wild.
(d)[1]
Lead bullets are widely used by hunters. Hunting for pleasure means that hunters often leave the animals they have killed, such as deer, bears and antelopes, in the place where they were shot. Suggest why this is a threat, rather than an advantage, to the Californian condor.
Worked solution & mark scheme
This 9-mark question has a full step-by-step worked solution and mark scheme. One marking point: “given food supplies” …