In an effort to boost her green credentials, U.S. Interior Secretary Gale Norton is fond of talking about the success of the program to reintroduce captive-bred California condors into the wild. But scientists aren’t so sure the program is a success. Reintroduced birds are being threatened by their old nemesis: lead from bullets. Four birds in the wild have died from ingesting lead in the last year, and 13 have required extensive drug treatment to remove lethal levels of lead, probably acquired from feasting on the carcasses of animals killed by gunfire. In March, scientists called on the feds to begin to eliminate lead bullets on federal land. The Interior Department has yet to respond to the request.
