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Welcome to “Season Three” of our osprey cam! Get ready for another exciting season of osprey viewing at the Waquoit Bay Reserve, brought to you by the Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge
If you’d like to show your appreciation for the nest cam, please Support the Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge! As a nonprofit volunteer organization, we support a wide variety of education, research and stewardship projects within the Mashpee Refuge to ensure the long-term protection and enhancement of native wildlife and habitats.
Thank you in advance!
We are thrilled to offer this live stream of an active pair of Osprey at their nest at Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The pair are appropriately named Rachel and Carson, after the famed environmentalist.
This opportunity for a bird’s eye view of a beloved bird’s habitat is the result of a collaboration between The Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge, which helped plan and locate the site for this unique “nest cam,” the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, one of the Refuge partners, and Comcast, which generously provided the equipment, installation and broadband connectivity to power this viewing experience.
One of our goals as a community-based nonprofit is to give the public opportunities to enjoy and interact with nature and wildlife. Thanks to Comcast, the live streaming of this osprey nest will broaden our reach to all of Cape Cod and beyond. We are grateful for the opportunity to use the live nest cam for observation, research and education purposes.
View highlights from 2024 (“Season Three”)
View highlights from 2023 (“Season Two”)
View highlights from last year (“Season One”) – mating, egg laying and hatching, feeding and more!
Please feel free to comment below with your observations or any questions you may have. We welcome your comments and questions! If you’d like to see a list of questions other viewers have asked, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Ospreys and the Nest Cam. You may also want to read this article to learn more about ospreys on Cape Cod.
Please note that first-time posters must be approved before comments are displayed, and allow up to 24 hours before your initial post can be seen by others.
The pecking order is never pretty. 6/14 At 7:39 pm The bully started pecking both siblings when mom came back with a stick. He wants her attention only to him. Mom looked but doesn’t interfere. It’s frustrating but they know now to lay down and avoid him.
Small fish was just delivered to the nest, baby bird was the first to eat, then the tyrant pushed he way in for a few bites.
There are a bunch of bugs, perhaps bees in the lower right area of the nest, many of them, seemingly large.
Are the adults getting the large clumps of green plants from one of the lakes near the Visitor Center? Are they floating lily pads of some sort?
Hi Claire! This nest is very close to a bay and marsh. Likely some sort of seaweed!
I just caught the biggest chick really attacking the back of another’s head. I get the survival of the fittest thing, but is there any reason that the big chick is attacking the others? Rachel just kind of watched/ignored it, and there wasn’t food around…I don’t really get it.
Guess this is where they get the
Terms “pecking order” and “bird brains”. Lol
I think he-is establishing dominance.
Now again the oldest attacks the younger one at 7:35 PM. This goes on everyday. They say the biggest contributor to siblicide by raptors is a lack of food. There is no lack of food in this nest.
Rachel is doing her best to shield the babies from the sun.
Joanne
follow up, now 12:17 pm, Rachel is now feeding the chicks with the fish that was in the nest.
12:15 Mom reached over, grabbed the fish, and she and the little one are having lunch together.
Hey Claire unlikely but possible, does your maiden name begin with a L? I have a cousin Claire living in Florida. 😀
No, my maiden name is Smith and I’m in Jacksonville. But it would have been fun if I was actually your cousin! Claire wasn’t a common a name for little girls until recent years. It was very rare in 1949 when I was born.
Thank you for the reply. She was 1946. Ya it was a long shot bet well worth the try. 😊
My first name is Karen, by the way. 🙂
12:13 pm, June 14,Rachel is standing over the chicks and continually fluttering her wings as if to provide cooling for the chicks.
A big threat to our beloved Osprey, as well as every other sea creature
Is the proposed dumping of huge stores of radioactive waste water into Cape Cod Bay, from a nearby recently decommissioned nuclear power plant in Plymouth.
We are working to stop this threat to the environment.
Only one million gallons.
11:46 am, June 14th, noticing a fish in the nest, not sure if it is partially eaten or not. Rachel and the chicks are resting.
Fish was delivered awhile ago, still in the nest — no takers.
They must be still full from this mornings feast.
Joanne
Carson must be reading our comments about his lack of timely feedings for his chicks — he’s been a much better provider in the past 2-3 days! When have we last seen an uneaten fish just lying in the nest with all the chicks still stuffed from the previous delivery?
Hi Glenn
Can we have the page numbers at the top of the screen as well as where they are now at the bottom?
It would be helpful to see at the top (.right above the comments)
Thank you!
Yes, that would be much more useful!
Good suggestion, but with the comments plugin we’re using, it isn’t an option. But I increased the number of comments shown per page so hopefully this will make it easier.
Is the fish a Porgy (Scup) ?
Thanks for all the replies. I had to take a nap and didn’t realize my question was already answered. Watching Rachel in the wee hours here has been fascinating. My BFF who lives in Sandwich sent me the link and I joined the Friends of MNWR. I’m 80 and the quest for learning never ends!
I’m learning about fish as well as ospreys! This is a “Scup” and it looks exactly like the fish Carson brought in yesterday. Thanks to all who ID’d it! 🙂
Carson brings a whopper to the nest at 5:14 A.M.. What kind of fish is it? I live on the West Coast in Southern California. It took Rachel almost an hour to feed the all the chicks & herself this huge fish!
Long dorsal fin, small mouth — maybe a “cunner”? We need a local fisherman to weigh in on an ID. 🙂
Looks like a delicious scup.
Scup (also known as Porgy) are common in the area. They are very scaly and bony and Rachel and the chicks devoured the entire thing. Must be a good source of calcium!
Thanks. I had fun researching it too. I’ve never seen one.
1:30 am feeding. The little guy got most of the food and stopped feeding cause he was full.
What’s causing the bright light spot that seems to be shining on the nest…or is it on the lens onĺy…I hope the ospreys aren’t bothered by it.
Hi Alice! I am not sure what the light is you are referencing but the cam does not shine a light on the nest, it uses infrared technology that works as night vision
Think it could have been the reflection of the strawberry moon?
Just a wild guess.
Joanne
It seems like a spider has taken a liking to the camera lens tonight…I hope it doesn’t decide to build a web there!!!
I’m seeing 3 big chicks and one egg, I guess Rachel still hopes it will hatch.
Been watching since the clutch. I know some things disturb people when seeing how nature works (though personally I become more disturbed daily how humans treat each other..just watching the news..)..however..what an interesting behavior of concern for her young today. I believe it was approx. 230ish..one chick was in heat distress, this troubled Rachel intensely. She first tried to move a stick, then rearrange herself to make better shade…and finally got to the right spot…very intent on the chick and checking often. Her efforts worked and she seemed quite relieved. Me too!
Carson (see his nice white breast) brought back a small fish around 6 P.M. and Rachel fed the youngest/smallest chick and herself with it. Whew & hooray! 👍👍💕
Thanks Alice!
Great that little one was fed.He has had a tough day being neck attacked by big Tyrant.
Remarkable Osprey rescue
https://youtu.be/Cg5TUR0QQB8
Remarkable is an understatement. That was AWESOME! Thanks so much for posting!!!
The nest is so big. I wish they all weren’t so close to the edge!
2:25pm mon. rachel is feeding all 3. unhatched egg still in nest. anyone know what they do for fluids? sometimes it looks like they are panting. something is distracting rachel. ok she’s back to feeding them.
I’m guessing the fish have plenty of fluids…?
Osprey do not drink water! They get all necessary water from fish. They do indeed pant. Interesting to see
thanx for that info
Anyone happen to snap a picture of the 3rd adult osprey in the nest today?
Joanne
This screen capture was made just after 12:30. Carson flew in with a fish and almost crash landed on the visitor.
This is another screen capture taken about 15 minutes earlier that shows more of the markings on the visitor — a wider black eye stripe and some of the same brown “collar like” markings on its chest similar to Rachel’s.
The visitor looks like a female based upon the brown necklace markings of females.
Thanks, Hap! I’m new to osprey watching (at least the up-close-and-personal kind we’re getting from the 24/7 camera), and I didn’t know that the brown necklace is a way to tell males from females. I was guessing male because of the smaller size, but now I know the visitor is a female and probably one of Rachel’s offspring from an earlier season. Also probably why she tolerates it being in the nest with the new chicks.
Perhaps one of last year’s chicks?
the penthouse is getting crowded.!!!
I’m sure that’s what Carson was thinking when he almost missed his landing with the big red fish!
I saw the three and wondered what was going on. Looked like another male. What a nosy little interloper lol
I’m not sure it was little one that got fed because we could not see the third chick,
The little one is WELL fed, I’m happy to say! 🙂
Happy to hear that! Thanks Claire. 🙂
The one to the left did not get fed or even get up during feeding.
Looks like the little one is to the left, partially covered by Rachel. One of the siblings seems to be pretty vocal.
Looked like only 2 chicks ate?
Did anyone see the third being fed?
He is lying down and Rachel was prodding him with her foot and hovering.
I haven’t watched in a couple days. Where is the little one? I’m worried 😟 it’s 6/13 @ 1:35 pm
I noticed the posted times are all over the place.
Wen, the little guy is WELL fed and will be sleeping off his very large crop for quite a while along with his siblings. 🙂
Thank you ☺️. I see her now and she seems stronger. It makes me so happy.
Carson brought a fish. They are being fed 12:35
Sandy, did you notice that when Carson flew in with the fish, he almost landed on top of the 3rd adult osprey in the nest? Neither Carson nor Rachel seemed to pay any attention to the visitor.
I missed that Claire.
Could it have been the Osprey that visited last month? I thought someone said it may be an offspring from last year?
I just posted a couple of pictures of it from around 12:30.
Yay! The little one is having a good lunch!
Yes! It warms my heart!!!
I hope he gets big and strong!
So, who is our mid-day visitor? Interestingly, neither Rachel nor Carson seem to mind his presence, which is surprising to me since I wouldn’t expect a previous hatchling from this nest to be welcome when there are new, small chicks. It’s small, so I’m guessing it’s a male.
Perhaps the adult visitor is the same adult previously by.
12:24 two adults in the nest; one is mom. Dad shows up with fish, then departs. Still two adults in the nest.
JUST SAW A THIRD OSPREY BRING A FISH TO THE NEST AT 12: 27 pm
Carson brought the fish, but who is the other osprey that was already making himself at home in the nest?
There were 2 adults in the nest and a third just flew up with a big fish.
He attacked both siblings so they’ve put their heads down.
The tyrant is trying to kill the little one.
I’ve read that the male is supposed to bring a fish to feed the family 8-10 times per day.
Carson feeds them maybe 5 per day.
5-10 will usually do it, just depends on the size!
Thanks Hannah.
The oldest seems to get cranky and attack his siblings when hungry and too long between feedings.
Think more feedings might save the younger chicks from his attacks.