12 Amazing Livestreams of Animals Around the World

You don’t have to travel far and wide to see the amazing creatures that inhabit the world’s wild places, zoos, and aquariums. Instead, you can use livestreaming technology to bring all that wonder and morale-boosting cuteness into the comfort of your own home.

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Decorah Bald Eagle Webcam, United States

Bald eagle with a chick on its nest — Mark Newman/Getty Images

This high-quality camera affords viewers a round-the-clock look into the nest of a pair of wild bald eagles living in Decorah, Iowa. It shows an inspiring tale of perseverance and recovery that involves the disappearance of the original male, the female’s eventual acceptance of a new suitor, and the destruction of two previous nests in a storm. The present nest was built for the eagles by the Raptor Resource Project in 2015. Currently they are incubating a clutch of three eggs, which are due to hatch in late March or early April. The eaglets will then fledge in mid to late June, though the adult eagles remain on site all year round.

02 of 12

Tembe Elephant Park Webcam, South Africa

Elephants at the waterhole at Tembe Elephant Park — Roy Giles/Getty Images

Even in times of global health, an African safari is a bucket list dream for many. The waterhole cam at Tembe Elephant Park transports you from your couch into the remote wilderness of a community-run game reserve in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. Turn the sound up and listen to the calls of exotic birds and animals as they come down to the water to drink. It operates 24 hours a day, with night vision giving you a front row seat to the park’s nocturnal activity. With all of the Big Five (including some of the world’s largest tusker elephants) present at Tembe, part of the fun is never knowing what you might see.

03 of 12

Tropical Reef Aquarium Webcam, United States

Tropical aquarium with fish — ~UserGI15613517/Getty Images

There’s nothing quite as therapeutic as watching fish in a well-kept aquarium, and this live cam gives you 24-hour access to the largest exhibit at the Aquarium of the Pacific in California. Inspired by the famously pristine reef ecosystems of Palau in Micronesia, the Tropical Reef Habitat contains 350,000 gallons of water and more than 1,000 colorful fish and corals. The stars of the show are the olive ridley sea turtle and the zebra, bonnethead, and blacktip reef sharks. If you’ve got bored kids at home, get them to look up each species as it appears on the screen – you never know, this could be the experience that kickstarts their future marine biology career.

04 of 12

Royal Albatross Webcam, New Zealand

Royal albatross on its nest, New Zealand — Bob Hilscher/Getty Images

Operated by The Cornell Lab since 2015, this live cam focuses on a northern royal albatross nest on New Zealand’s breathtakingly beautiful Otago Peninsula. Northern royal albatrosses are endangered and endemic, and the largest seabirds in the world with a wing span of almost 10 feet. Each year the lab’s live cam follows a different breeding pair. This year’s albatrosses, OGK and YRK, laid an egg in November and will look after their fluffy hatchling for another six or seven months. If there’s nothing much happening when you tune in, scroll further down the page to view previous live feed highlights or to read blog articles about the lives of the cam’s feathered stars.

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05 of 12

Wolong Grove Panda Webcam, China

Giant pandas at Wolong National Nature Reserve, China — Hung_Chung_Chih/Getty Images

This webcam is one of three live cams at the Panda Center in Sichuan province’s Wolong National Nature Reserve. The center is responsible for scientific research projects and the captive breeding and wild release of vulnerable giant pandas. For viewers at home, the cam offers the chance to watch these adorable black-and-white bears sleeping, eating, playing, and interacting with one another in lush bamboo enclosures that simulate their natural environment. Tune in any time, and scroll through fan comments and snapshots to find out what’s happened since your last visit.

06 of 12

Alligator and Spoonbill Swamp Webcam, United States

Roseate spoonbill at St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park — Steve Brooks/ 500px/Getty Images

Anyone who’s missing the sunshine should check in on this 24-hour cam, which overlooks the swamp at St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park in Florida. Reptile fans can watch hundreds of American alligators basking on the banks or keeping cool in the water, with daily feeding demonstrations at midday and 3 p.m. local time. The trees above the swamp are full of native birds including herons, egrets, and wood storks. The stars of the avian show are the roseate spoonbills, immediately recognizable by their uniquely shaped bills and blush-colored plumage. The birds and alligators live in relative harmony, with the latter protecting the birds’ nests from tree-climbing predators like raccoons and opossums.

07 of 12

Great Horned Owl Nest Webcam, United States

Great horned owl and chick on the nest — bobloblaw/Getty Images

Since 2012, this livestreaming feed has watched great horned owls that nest on a property in western Montana. The project is conducted in partnership with the Owl Research Institute, which promotes conservation by studying the behavior and ecology of owls in the area. The owl pair featured in the feed are named Wonky (the female) and Hootie (the male), and have eggs that are due to hatch any day now. Viewers are guaranteed some amazing footage in the coming weeks. The owls also have an active fan base, with people around the world commenting on their antics and offering a sense of community for those currently feeling a little isolated.

08 of 12

Underwater Otter Webcam, Canada

Sea otter underwater — kwiktor/Getty Images

Sea otters have got to be one of the world’s most universally loved creatures, with their expressive, whiskered faces and playful nature. You can get an amazing insight into the daily lives of the sea otters at Vancouver Aquarium with this underwater cam, which shows just how agile they are in their aquatic element. Watch them playing, feeding, and interacting with the camera, then switch over to the aquarium’s overwater live cam to watch how they behave on land. These sea otters were rescued as small babies and had to be bottle-fed and groomed around the clock by dedicated aquarium staff. Due to low light conditions underwater, this cam is best during daylight hours.

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09 of 12

Tau Waterhole Webcam, South Africa

Zebras drinking at the waterhole in Madikwe Game Reserve — Moelyn Photos/Getty Images

When the action at Tembe waterhole goes quiet, look and see what’s going on at this one instead. Located in Madikwe Game Reserve on the South Africa-Botswana border, the 24-hour cam regularly captures over 27 different species of game including lions, elephants, and the highly endangered African wild dog. Birders are in for a treat as well, as avian species flock to the site to drink and bathe. Watch long enough, and you might even see the waterhole’s resident Nile crocodiles in action as they prey upon their unsuspecting visitors. This cam isn’t purely about wildlife sightings, however; it’s also about majestic sunrises and sunsets, and the captivating sounds of the African bush.

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Magellanic Penguin Exhibit Webcam, United States

Magellanic penguin close up — Mark Newman/Getty Images

Another popular live cam from the Aquarium of the Pacific, this one focuses on the June Keyes Penguin Habitat. Here you can watch everybody’s favorite flightless birds as they swim, preen, snooze, and bicker over food in a large enclosure designed to replicate their natural rocky habitat. All 20 of them are Magellanic penguins (native to South America), and each one has its own distinct personality. Watching them interact with one another is kind of like following the lives and relationships of your favorite soap opera or reality TV show characters. Kids and adults alike will love identifying individuals using their color-coded wing tags, which can be cross-referenced with the aquarium’s penguin guide.

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Canopy Lodge Fruit Feeder Webcam, Panama

Toucan, Panama — Peter Milota, Jr./Getty Images

This fruit feeder cam is located in the grounds of Canopy Lodge in El Valle de Antón, one of Panama’s top birding destinations. From the moment you tune in, exotic bird calls and singing cicadas bring the sound of the tropics into your living room; while gaudily plumaged feathered visitors flood your screen with color. Keep an eye out for jewel-bright flycatchers and tanagers, motmots, and hummingbirds, in addition to the occasional reptile or rodent. The cam was installed by The Cornell Lab at the end of 2017 and has since recorded no fewer than 58 different avian species. Many of these were spotted and reported for the first time by viewers just like you.

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Kitten Rescue Webcam, United States

Group of black and white kittens — Photo by Laurie Cinotto/Getty Images

If you don’t have pets at home, it might be the domestic animals of friends and family members that you’re missing most. Get your feline fix with the live cam at Kitten Rescue Sanctuary, a no-kill shelter located in Los Angeles. Here you can watch nursing moms tend to their adorable babies or older kittens that are ready to be adopted romping around with their friends. You never know, you might meet your own furry soulmate in the process! The sanctuary has another cam too, which lets you watch the rescues that live there permanently, including a little white dog and three adult cats with cerebellar hypoplasia lovingly known as the Powerpuff Girls.