The California condor is a diurnal feeder, meaning it typically feeds during the heat of the day. As the afternoon draws to a close, it perches on a convenient tree or cliff to rest. It continues resting on its perch till around noon the following day. It then feeds again if the weather is propitious. If it ate a lot the previous day, it may remain on its roost instead of foraging for food.
The California condor can fly a considerable distance in a short time. It often flies well over 100 miles in a single day. It achieves these distances by making effective use of thermals. They prefer to soar instead of flapping their wings. Since they lack the extra large breastbone that anchors the wings of most birds, taking off poses a problem. For this reason, they choose lofty roosts from which they can leap into the air and fly with minimal wing movement. When they must take off from the ground, running downhill helps them get into the air. In spite of their ability to fly far and fast, they do not migrate.
After a male condor successfully courts a female, the two become lifelong mates. During the winter months, they establish a nest in a lofty place. Both male and female incubate their single egg and feed their single offspring after it hatches. They usually raise a chick every two years, but some couples do so annually.
The California condor eats carrion. As such, it helps clean up the natural world and recycles the nutrients in dead animal flesh. It even eats bone to some extent. In the past it fed on the remains of large wild animals that once populated North America. Now it feeds mostly on dead cattle, sheep and small mammals, such as ground squirrels.
The California condor played an important role in Native American myths and legends. The stories vary from tribe to tribe. According to the Wiyot, it created new life after a destructive flood, but it played a sinister role in Mono legend. Other tribes used condor feathers as a ritual adornment, according to the Rochester Institute of Technology.