The Region - News from Dec. 25, 1985

Topa Topa, the captive California condor celibate for 18 years, may finally be getting a mate. Blood tests at the Los Angeles Zoo confirm that the condor delivered to the zoo on Sept. 6 to mate with him is a female. Zoo officials report that the two huge vultures are getting along splendidly. “We have high hopes. . . . They are showing signs of pair formation,” said Kathleen Cox, the zoo’s research director. Zoo officials named the potential mate Tama-yawut, which means Earth Mother in the language of the Chumash, California’s tribe of coastal Indians. The breeding effort is critical for the nearly extinct birds. There are 21 birds in captivity, 11 at the Los Angeles Zoo and 10 at the San Diego Wild Animal Park, and six known to remain in the wild.