MONTHLY SPEAKERS
DECEMBER 2021 - "THE CONDOR'S SHADOW" FILM
Q&A: Joseph Brandt
Date: December 14, 2021
Film Summary: The Condor's Shadow profiles the ongoing challenge of bringing the iconic California condor back from the brink of extinction. Biologist Joseph Brandt, zookeeper Mike Clark, toxicologist Myra Finkelstein as well as a feisty condor named Pitahsi all contribute to the narrative in a year-in-the-life story of endangered species recovery. With vérité footage shot in the ruggedly beautiful nesting habitat of the condor and interviews with those who have lived the story for more than thirty years, this heart-wrenching and beautiful film will make you appreciate the passion and hard work required to pull a species back from the brink.
Speaker Bio: The lead field biologist for the Wildlife Service’s Condor Recovery Program, Joseph Brandt is a larger-than-life character - literally, at 6'6" he's an impressive and gregarious individual in person as well as onscreen. Passionate and at the same time pragmatic about building a self-sustaining wild condor population, Joseph is one of those exceptional individuals that relishes the gritty challenges found in biological field work. As condors never nest anywhere convenient to humans, Joseph's extensive background in rock climbing is used routinely in his job. Joseph shares his passion for the condor in a way that will make you appreciate the beauty of one of the rarest birds on earth. As his collaborator in the Big Sur condor recovery effort, Joe Burnett, related "...he's in it because he cares about the birds".
