Buenos Aires province is gaining a one-of-a-kind visitor.

An injured Andean condor was discovered by a family in Jujuy province on Friday, prompting immediate action by conservationists to bring the bird to Buenos Aires for rehabilitation.

The condor literally fell from the sky into a home in the Jujuy town of Purmamarca, according to Rayen Estrada Pacheco, a biologist with the nonprofit BioAndina Foundation’s condor conservation programme. 

“The condor appeared to have difficulty flying,” Estrada Pacheo said. “It fell into the house of a family.”

The surprised family quickly notified authorities. 

After its discovery, the condor was first brought to Jujuy’s Center of Care for Indigenous Fauna for evaluation, where it was diagnosed with a fractured leg and examined for the presence of lead, a common culprit for poisoning the species.  

To further treat its injury, steps are being made to bring the bird to the Bioandina Rescue Center in Buenos Aires province, for which special permission was obtained from the provincial government to fly the condor on an Aerolíneas Argentinas plane.

The condor will continue to recover under the close eye of specialists before being released, according to Jujuy’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. 

A relative of the California condor, Andean condors are the world’s largest bird of prey, with a wingspan of 3.2 meters. Native to the Andes, it is considered sacred in multiple Indigenous cultures. 

The Andean condor is classified as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and is considered a Provincial Natural Monument through Jujuy’s Law 6318, granting it legal protection. 

This bird of prey suffered rapid decline in the twentieth century due to farmers’ poisoning of carcasses to kill predators, with less than 7,000 Andean condors estimated to be left in the wild. 

As an endangered species, the Andean Condor requires specific care in order to ensure its survival and eventual release to the wild. After recovery, the plan is for the bird to be set free in one of Jujuy’s condor habitats. 

María Inés Zigarán, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Jujuy who traveled to the Center of Care for Indigenous Fauna specifically to observe the condor’s conditions, emphasized the importance of protecting the endangered bird.

“The conservation of the Andean condor is an important priority,” Zigarán said.