Barnegat Light Osprey Nest Cam

The Osprey Nest

This camera frames a working osprey nest built from a tangle of driftwood and branches on a raised platform. Ospreys are specialized fish-eating raptors, and viewers can watch the resident pair incubate eggs, feed nestlings and defend their territory through the breeding season.

A Coastal Salt Marsh

Behind the nest stretches a classic salt marsh of tidal creeks, cordgrass meadows and sandy shoals that flood and drain with the bay. This rich estuarine habitat supports the menhaden and other forage fish that ospreys depend on, making it prime hunting ground.

Long Beach Island Wildlife

Set on the northern tip of Long Beach Island, the scene captures one of New Jersey's most densely populated stretches of nesting ospreys. The surrounding waters and marshes also draw herons, egrets and shorebirds, a living portrait of the Jersey Shore ecosystem.

A Conservation Story

The feed is part of a long-running conservation effort to monitor and protect ospreys, a species that rebounded dramatically after the banning of harmful pesticides. Each nesting season offers a first-hand look at the challenges and triumphs of these remarkable fish hawks.