Owner Comments:
Our first coin from Chile in the set that is also the first aluminum coin in this set brings us the largest extant flying dinosaur in the world if both wingspan and weight are considered. This is the Andean Condor, species name Vultur gryphus, which is also Chile’s national bird.
The Andean Condor belongs to the New World Vulture family and it is truly enormous. They range in size from 3 ft 3 in to 4 ft 3 in in length, with a wingspan range of 8 ft 10 in to 10 ft 6 in and a weight range of 24 to 33 pounds for males and 18 to 24 pounds for females. Oddly among birds of prey, Andean Condor males are larger than females. Additional sexual dimorphism exists in the form of the red comb which mature males of this species have on their heads and which females lack. From this feature, we can actually determine that the animal depicted on the coin is a male. Coloration for both species is largely black, with a white ruff of feathers around the neck and white bars on the wings which are bolder and more pronounced in males. Both sexes have bald, black heads, which allows Andean Condors to keep their heads clean after feeding by dehydration and ultraviolet light to sterilize the bare skin. Male Andean Condors have brown eyes while females have red eyes, adding to the strong sexual dimorphism found in this species. Geographically, the Andean Condor is found throughout the Andes mountain range in South America, being most numerous in Chile and Argentina and scarcer in Peru and Bolivia and downright rare to sight in Colombia and Venezuela.
Like all vultures, the Andean Condor derives most of its food from carrion, the flesh of already dead animals. They prefer open, non-forested habitat in order to locate deceased animals as Andean Condors locate their food by sight rather than smell as smaller vultures do. Andean Condors can travel over 100 miles a day in order to locate enough food to sustain animals of their size. Unsurprisingly, Andean Condors prefer large carcasses over small ones and virtually any animal in their ecosystem that has died can be food for Andean Condors due to their nature as scavengers. Andean Condors also have a mutualistic relationship with smaller vultures such as the Turkey Vulture, the Lesser Yellow-Headed Vulture and the Greater Yellow-Headed Vulture. As these smaller vultures locate carcasses by smell, they will often lead Andean Condors to large carcasses that the condors would miss on their own. Once at the carcass in question, the Andean Condors can tear open larger carcasses that the smaller vultures would not be able to on their own. By helping each other, all of the vultures get a meal and everyone lives to fight another day. As obligate scavengers, Andean Condors perform a vital cleaning function by consuming carcasses that would otherwise sit around and rot, providing a breeding ground for disease causing microbes.
In breeding, the Andean Condor stops being such a rule-breaker and follows a more typical path for raptors. Andean Condors reach maturity at five or six years of age and they mate for life. Males attract potential mates by approaching the desired female with his neck outstretched, revealing the inflated neck and the chest patch, while hissing and then extending his wings and standing erect while clicking his tongue. Aerial displays are also an important part of initial courtship and later strengthening the pair bond. Andean Condors prefer to build their nests on cliffs at elevations of between 9,800 to 16,400 ft, and their nests are constructed of sticks. Andean Condor pairs only breed every other year during February and March, and they produce one or two bluish-white eggs which are incubated by both parents for 54 to 58 days. Baby Andean Condors are born helpless, fuzzy and grey. Andean Condors fledge and take flight at the age of six months and they stay with their parents until the age of two, when they go off on their own to seek territory and eventually mates. Unsurprisingly, these massive and strong modern dinosaurs have no natural predators and they can live for over 50 years.
Sadly, these gorgeous and amazing birds are classified as Near Threatened. The main causes are habitat loss and consuming carcasses that have been killed by man-made poisons, which secondarily poison Andean Condors. Thankfully, these majestic animals are getting a lot of help through conservation efforts, reduction of pest poisoning and captive breeding programs. These kinds of efforts have been quite successful with other raptors, and they seem to be working for the Andean Condor as well. It looks like this gorgeous modern theropod will be staying with us for a long time to come.