Wolf Bay Osprey Webcam – Platform Nest in Orange Beach

The Wolf Bay Osprey Webcam looks down into an osprey nest on a wooden platform behind the public library in Orange Beach, Alabama, with Wolf Bay spread out beyond it. The bowl of sticks fills the lower half of the picture, while the top half takes in a lawn, a stand of pines, long docks with roofed boathouses and open water running to a low, wooded far shore. In spring and summer this is where a pair of ospreys rebuilds the nest, lays its eggs and raises chicks until they fly. Outside the breeding season the platform is quieter, though a perching bird can still turn up on the rim. The City of Orange Beach streams the view around the clock on YouTube.

About the Wolf Bay Osprey Nest

The nest stands on the shore behind the Orange Beach Public Library at 26267 Canal Road, according to the city and local news coverage, on ground only about 2 meters (7 feet) above sea level. The city’s Coastal Resources Department runs the camera, and its YouTube stream is named after the hardware, an Axis Q1615 Mk II. Local news coverage dates the city’s osprey filming back to 2014, and the current YouTube broadcast has been running since February 2020.

The pair that nests here has a following. YouTube viewers named them Josie and Ebert, after the nearby Baldwin County communities of Josephine and Elberta, and Coastal Resources staff told WKRG that the two had returned to the same nest for 12 years. Ospreys usually lay one to four eggs, three on average, and the birds are state and federally protected, so staff cannot step in when a chick struggles.

The pair is not on the nest all year. Staff say the parents arrive early in spring to rebuild, and the city says egg laying usually begins in late April, followed by 35 to 42 days of incubation. Ospreys can be found in coastal Alabama all year, according to a NOAA fact sheet, so a bird may still land on the platform in the colder months, while many ospreys that nest farther north spend the winter in South America. Snow geese that fly down from Arctic Canada to winter on this same Gulf Coast are among the travelers followed on our bird migration map.

Wolf Bay itself is an estuary on the north side of Orange Beach, fed by Wolf Creek, Sandy Creek and Miflin Creek. The bay and several of its tributaries were named an Outstanding Alabama Water on April 20, 2007, and the watershed covers about 180 square kilometers (more than 44,000 acres) of southwest Baldwin County. Its water drains into the Intracoastal Waterway and then Perdido Bay, which meets the Gulf of Mexico at Perdido Pass.

Weather and Climate in Orange Beach

Orange Beach has long, humid summers and short, mild winters. Ten years of weather data for the nest site put average July and August highs near 31°C (87°F), with average lows around 25°C (77°F). June through September is also the wettest stretch, with roughly 160 to 190 millimeters (6.3 to 7.4 inches) of rain a month. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and storms are the main threat to the nest itself: Coastal Resources staff say it takes a beating while the pair is away over winter, which is why the birds start each spring with repairs.

January averages about 16°C (61°F) in the afternoon and 8°C (46°F) at night, and the city’s own FAQ says southern Alabama rarely gets cold enough to put the birds at risk. April highs reach around 23°C (74°F) just as egg laying begins, and October still averages about 26°C (78°F). On an overcast day the bay behind the nest turns a pale silver and the far shore fades to a thin dark line.

Things to Do Near Wolf Bay

A few hundred meters east along Canal Road, Orange Beach Waterfront Park also sits on Wolf Bay. The city lists a 122-meter (400-foot) fishing pier there, with covered pavilions, picnic shelters and a paved walking path, though one travel guide reports the pier closed, so check before bringing a rod. The Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail, whose foundation helps sponsor the camera, strings more than 24 kilometers (15 miles) of paths through seven trails and six distinct ecosystems, and the free Orange Beach Indian and Sea Museum sits along its Rattlesnake Ridge section.

Farther out, Gulf State Park Pier in neighboring Gulf Shores reaches 469 meters (1,540 feet) over the Gulf of Mexico. For more ospreys, Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge west of Gulf Shores is one of the sites where the Alabama Coastal Foundation put up new osprey nesting platforms.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

More cameras along the Alabama coast and at another osprey nest:

• Orange Beach Webcam
• Gulf Shores Webcam
• Barnegat Light Osprey Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Wolf Bay Osprey Webcam located?

Behind the Orange Beach Public Library on Canal Road in Orange Beach, Alabama, on the shore of Wolf Bay in Baldwin County. Pensacola, Florida, is about 37 kilometers (23 miles) to the east in a straight line.

What can you see on the Wolf Bay Osprey Webcam?

A square wooden platform packed with sticks and braced by angled timbers, with a lawn below. Behind it are pines, docks with roofed boathouses, a line of rocks and a yellow floating line in the shallows, and open water reaching a low shore across Wolf Bay. A date and clock run along the top of the picture.

Why is the Wolf Bay Osprey Webcam nest empty?

Most likely because it is outside the nesting season. City staff say the pair is not at the nest over winter and returns early in spring to repair storm damage. Ospreys live on the Alabama coast all year, so a single bird may still perch there in the cold months.

When do the Wolf Bay ospreys lay eggs?

Usually from late April, the city says. Incubation lasts about 35 to 42 days and the young start to fledge at seven to eight weeks old, so the nest is busiest from late spring through summer.

What are the Wolf Bay ospreys called?

Josie and Ebert, names given by YouTube viewers after the communities of Josephine and Elberta.

Who operates the Orange Beach osprey cam?

The City of Orange Beach, through its Coastal Resources Department, with sponsorship from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Alabama Coastal Foundation, the Backcountry Trail Foundation and The Nature Conservancy.

Why does the Orange Beach osprey cam sometimes go offline?

The city says the system periodically has technical difficulties, and that some problems cannot be fixed while birds are actively nesting, so a spring fault may wait until the season is over.

What is the weather like in Orange Beach, Alabama?

Hot and humid in summer, with July and August highs near 31°C (87°F), and mild in winter, with January highs around 16°C (61°F). Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30.

Source: City of Orange Beach Coastal Resources