Day of the Condor

For the new year, we took Maya and baby Evan to the zoo to visit with the zoo animals. Among the many animals was an Andean Condor of whom we got a picture next to Melissa (below). That bird has been on my mind lately.

Melissa later recalled a Peruvian Inca song, “el Condor Pasa” whose melody is well known in English. We found several examples of this haunting melody with images and video of this stoic, majestic and somewhat mysterious bird.



Andean condors are one of the largest flying birds. Adults can weigh over 30 pounds, stand over four feet tall and possess wingspans of up to 12 feet. The Andean Condor is a national symbol of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru and plays an important role in the folklores and mythologies of many of South and Central American indigenous cultures.




The condor is also a vulture and member of the raptor family. It is speculated by crypto-zoologists as the mythological “Thunderbird”. The vulture family feeds exclusively on carrion and performs the function in nature of monitoring and disposing of potential sources of disease.



Various Indian cultures saw the vulture as a purification sign. The Greeks considered this bird symbolic of transformation. As old decayed flesh is removed, new life emerges. Condors are vital for the well being of other life forms. Their trust in the creative force to provide for them is unshakeable. In various Latin American indigenous cultures, the vulture is symbolic of death and rebirth, a mother symbol which also represents purification.



Condors ride chaotic winds and easily master the Andes wild mountainous gusts. King vultures were also popular in the Mayan codices and are regularly drawn and mentioned just as frequently as the eagle would be in North America. Mayan astronomical calendars also make mention of a meeting period of the the North's Eagle with the South's majestic and mysterious Andean Condor.