Newfoundland Osprey Webcam – Watch Chicks Grow Each Summer

The Newfoundland Osprey Webcam looks down into a large stick nest on a wooden platform just outside a Newfoundland Power substation in St. John’s, the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador. Power lines cross the grass on one side of the frame and a stand of evergreens fills the other. From spring into late summer a pair of ospreys raises its chicks here, and the camera follows the whole season: nest repairs, eggs, feeding and the first flights. Ospreys migrate south for the winter, so from about September until spring the platform is usually empty.

About the Newfoundland Power Osprey Nest

The nest is on Snow’s Lane in the north end of St. John’s, a city of 110,525 people at the 2021 census, just outside Newfoundland Power’s Virginia Waters Substation and about 5.5 kilometers (3.5 miles) north of St. John’s Harbour. Virginia Lake lies about 800 meters (half a mile) to the south. The platform belongs to the utility’s Osprey Nest Management Program, which builds stand-in structures so the birds can nest away from power equipment, protecting both the ospreys and the electrical system. Newfoundland Power describes this camera, mounted above one of those platforms, as the first osprey NestCam in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The pair that nests here is known as Beaumont and Hope, and local news has followed them back to the same nest season after season. The current stream has run without a break since April 2021. Newfoundland Power follows guidelines from the provincial Department of Environment and Climate Change to keep nests safe, but it does not interfere with the protected birds or their natural behavior. As with any live view of nature, the company notes, nobody can predict what will happen on camera, so it asks people to use their discretion when watching with young children.

When Are the Ospreys on the Newfoundland Osprey Webcam?

Ospreys spend the winter far to the south, between the southern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America, and fly north in spring to breed. At this nest Beaumont has usually arrived first and started adding sticks before Hope returns. Eggs follow in the second half of May. Newfoundland Power announced the first egg of the 2021 season on May 18, and in May 2024 it reported two eggs laid over a few days, expected to hatch in about four weeks. While the eggs and small chicks need cover, the mother stays on the nest and the father goes out for food.

Summer is the busiest time on the camera, as the chicks hatch in June and grow through July. By late August the young birds are stretching their wings and learning to fly from the platform. Usually by September the family has headed south, and the nest stays empty through autumn and winter.

Weather and Climate in St. John’s

St. John’s has a cool, wet and windy climate set by the North Atlantic. Summer is mild: in July and August daytime highs average about 21 C (70 F), with nights around 11 to 12 C (52 to 54 F). Winter is cold rather than severe, with January highs near -1 C (31 F) and February lows around -8 C (17 F). The city averages 1,539 millimeters (60.6 inches) of precipitation a year, and snow usually falls from November through April, adding up to about 363 centimeters (143 inches) in a typical season.

Fog and wind are the local signatures. Among major Canadian cities, St. John’s records the most foggy days, about 124 a year, and the highest average wind speed, 24.3 kilometers per hour (15.1 miles per hour). On the camera that can mean mornings when the trees beyond the nest fade into gray, and winter scenes in which snow covers the empty platform, sometimes only a few weeks before the ospreys come back.

Things to Do Near the St. John’s Osprey Nest

The closest outing is Virginia Lake, about 800 meters (half a mile) south of the substation. Below the lake, the Virginia River Walk follows the Virginia River on gravel paths and wooden boardwalks through a green strip of the city, and to the west the Virginia River Trail carries on as a compacted path open to walkers and cyclists.

Signal Hill, with Cabot Tower at its summit, overlooks the harbour and downtown about 5 kilometers (3 miles) south of the nest as the crow flies. The former fishing village of Quidi Vidi is about 4 kilometers (2.6 miles) away on the city’s eastern edge. For the open Atlantic, Cape Spear Lighthouse National Historic Site, the easternmost point of North America, is about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) southeast of the nest in a straight line.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

More live views from Newfoundland, and another osprey nest on the Atlantic coast.

• St. John’s Webcam
• St. Philip’s Harbour Webcam
• Barnegat Light Osprey Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Newfoundland Osprey Webcam located?

The nest is on Snow’s Lane in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, just outside Newfoundland Power’s Virginia Waters Substation. It is about 5.5 kilometers (3.5 miles) north of St. John’s Harbour and about 800 meters (half a mile) north of Virginia Lake.

What can you see on the Newfoundland Osprey Webcam?

The camera looks down into a large nest of sticks on a square wooden platform, with power lines, grass and shrubs below and evergreen trees to one side. From spring to late summer it shows the osprey pair, their eggs and their chicks. Outside the breeding season it shows the empty nest.

Why is the Newfoundland Power osprey nest empty?

The family usually leaves for the south by September and spends the winter somewhere between the southern United States and South America, so the nest stays empty through autumn and winter. The stream keeps running, and in past years the pair has come back to this nest in spring.

When do ospreys return to the nest in Newfoundland?

They come back in spring. At this nest eggs have been laid in the second half of May, with the first egg of 2021 announced on May 18, and the chicks hatch about four weeks later, in June.

What are the names of the Newfoundland Power ospreys?

The pair is known as Beaumont and Hope in Newfoundland Power’s updates and in local news coverage. Beaumont has usually been the first to arrive and starts adding to the nest before Hope returns.

Why does Newfoundland Power have an osprey nest camera?

It is part of the utility’s Osprey Nest Management Program. Ospreys often pick power poles for their nests, so the company puts up stand-in platforms that keep them away from live equipment, and this camera follows one of those nests.

What is the weather like in St. John’s?

Summers are mild, with July and August highs around 21 C (70 F). Winters are cold and snowy, with January highs near -1 C (31 F) and snow from November through April, and fog and wind are common all year.

Source: Newfoundland Power