Mississippi River Flyway Cam: Bird Migration & Bald Eagles

On an island in the Driftless Area, at the Upper Mississippi National Fish and Wildlife Refuge on Lake Onalaska, this Flyway Cam has a front-row seat for one of North America's great migrations. The island is a vital stopover for millions of birds as they move along the Mississippi River Flyway, and the live camera is there for the spring passage and for the river wildlife that uses the site in other seasons as well.

The variety can be spectacular. Bald eagles, American white pelicans, sandhill cranes, and tundra swans are among the birds documented here, a roll call that already suggests how important this water and wetland must be. In partnership with the Raptor Resource Project and explore.org, the camera does not just offer a pretty river view; it records a living flyway, hour by hour, as flocks arrive, rest, and move on. Even outside the peak of migration, Lake Onalaska and the refuge around it are worth watching, a broad, watery landscape with a habit of producing surprises.

It is the kind of stream that can turn a few spare minutes into a genuine wildlife watch.

The stream is provided by Explore Hummingbird & Bird Migration Cams. Return in spring especially, but do not ignore the other seasons; the river keeps its own calendar.