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Welcome to “Season Four” of our osprey cam! Carson arrived on March 20th, 2025. 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 2025 (“Season Four”)
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.
Around 3:45…what is that running around the nest? Looks too small to be a squirrel but I don’t think it’s a mouse. I loved seeing the owl earlier.
Kathy, I’d guess it was a small squirrel. Definitely not a mouse with the bushy tail. Might have been a chipmunk but it would be unusual for one to climb so high. Whatever it was, it better not hang around too long or it will make a nice meal for the owl!
My sentiment, too, so I’m glad he didn’t hang around long. I always appreciate your input.
Thanks…loved the documentary.
https://youtu.be/HVObqCokci8?si=a4oll1RW_ewsjVLh
making of PBS doc
season of the Osprey
Today at 0400 there was an owl on the nest eating it’s prey
Great catch, Lois! First owl of the season. Won’t be the last.
Will there be any structural support work done on the nest during the off-season, maybe early Spring before Carson & Rachel return? Early this season there was some concern about a small hole in the nest when the chicks were very small, and at one point it seemed like they had possibly fallen, although I believe the final opinion was that this was not the case.
Hi Patty. Yes, some tree trimming near the nest is being evaluated and at the same time, any needed nest support will be considered. Thanks for the question and sorry for the delayed response.
Osprey on the nest this morning (sept 10) around 08:09 for awhile so they haven’t all flown south yet.
Did Rachel and Carson leave for the season. I haven’t seen them since last week.
Rachel is probably gone by now. The females are usually the first to leave, typically late August. Carson, I’m not sure about. He may still be in the area, but with no offspring to feed, he has little reason to hang out in the nest. He may still make an occasional appearance though. Soon we’ll start seeing other visitors to the nest – owls, hawks and other birds, and racoons, squirrels and other mammals.Thanks to all who are still watching!
I watch year-round. It’s interesting to see how the nest changes over time and what might show up.
7:17 on Aug 26, both osprey on nest. One very loud and the other standing with head down.
7:31/32 standing one seems to be attacking hunched one?
The hunched one is a juvenile. The other looks like Rachel.Seems like a territorial dispute. Interesting this late in the season. Rachel should be leaving soon for her migration south. With no offspring to provide for, Carson may leave early as well or maybe he’s already gone.
Such a bummer. I was wondering about their migration this year with no offspring.
Rachel on nest 8/25 10:30 PM
Someone’s on the nest at 1:52 am monday 8/25/25.
Rachel or Carson sleeping with head tucked in on far side of nest 8/19/25 12:14am.
Rachel on nest 8/12 9:02AM
Almost breaks my heart to see Rachel alone, still at her nest. I know it’s how nature is, but still…
Rachel or Carson on nest sleeping. Someone else screeching at 1:08 am.
Someone’s on the nest 7:38 pm aug 5th
Carson brings Rachel 1/2 fish to get the day started
Montana Osprey cam… chicks being fed.ll
https://sportsmansparadiseonline.com/dunrovin-osprey-nest-cam/
Both chicks at Brewster Nest flew the coop!!!
One or both are still in the area amd back on the nest nearly every day