There’s no getting around it: things are a little stressful right now. We know that time spent connecting with nature is a powerful stress-reduction tool, but did you know that even looking at pictures or listening to sounds of nature can have an impact on your stress levels?

To give you a virtual “change of scenery” and a healthy dose of nature and wildlife, we’ve compiled a list of the amazing live animal webcams and digital wildlife experiences from all around the state, the country, and the world.

For Bird-Lovers

Get an inside look at the fastest animals on Earth—right in our own “backyard” (so to speak)! There are nearly half a dozen live webcams at locations across Massachusetts focused on nesting Peregrine Falcons.

Beyond Massachusetts, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has live streams of a hummingbird feeder in West Texas, a fruit feeder in Panama, and a seed and suet feeder at Cornell itself, along with a half dozen other nest cams from around the world, in season.

Virtual Aquariums

For a truly sublime “Moment of Zen”, check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium Live Animal Cams. In particular, the Jelly Cams offers a gentle, soothing visual experience paired with calming background music, but the boundless joy of sea otters frolicking and playing can’t be beat.

Ocean Networks Canada maintains several live webcams from 75 feet below the sea at the Folger Pinnacle Reef off Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The cameras only operate for five minutes every hour, but you never know what you’re going to see!

Zoo-Tube

The San Diego Zoo’s Live Animal Cams include everything from penguins and polar bears to elephants and tigers. Check out the giraffe cam for a look at the African Plains habitat, which also includes rhinos and other wildlife from their Safari Park.

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo hosts a few live animal webcasts on its website, including a Lion Cam, Elephant Cam, Giant Panda cam, and even one for Naked Mole Rats!

Around the World in 80 Seconds

On the other side of the globe, you can visit a watering hole at the Djuma Game Reserve in South Africa, where impalas, elephants, hippos, and all manner of birds come to drink.

And if none of the above are quite what you’re looking for, Earth Cam and Explore.org have an incredible array of live animal cams from around the world—although not technically “wildlife,” the Puppy Playroom cam at the Warrior Canine Connection, an organization that trains veterans to train service dogs for fellow veterans, is the “cuteness overload” we all need right now.

Have you ever asked a friend for the ID of a plant or animal you didn’t recognize? Are you the friend who gets asked? Do you ever snap a photo of something you don’t recognize to research later, but you never get to it? Do you have hundreds of pictures on your phone or computer of plants and animals that you wish could be of use to someone? If you answered yes to any of these questions, consider joining iNaturalist!

What is iNaturalist?

iNaturalist is an online platform designed to connect people like you to an entire community of nature enthusiasts). Here, users share sightings of plants, fungi, and animals and in return get identifications on what’s in their images (or audio files). ID’s are consensus-based. This means other users can see your observations, and either agree or disagree with your identifications based on their own knowledge.

An observation becomes “research grade” when the majority of identifiers reach a species-level consensus about the plant, animal, or fungi in your picture. If you think your photo of an insect in your yard isn’t important enough to post, think again! All research grade observations on iNaturalist get added to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, and can then be used in scientific research and publications.

How to Use iNaturalist

One of the best parts about iNaturalist is that everyone can use it–you don’t need to be a scientist or a professional naturalist. All you need is a computer or smartphone and an interest in the natural world around you.

To get started, create a free account at iNaturalist.org or via the smartphone app. Then, upload identifiable pictures or audio with a location and a date and give it your best ID (if you have no clue, the platform will often suggest what it thinks is in your photo). Within minutes or hours, other users will see your observation and will help to identify it.

iNaturalist and Mass Audubon

Mass Audubon is launching an iNaturalist initiative to compile a catalog of the biodiversity present at our wildlife sanctuaries. All of our sanctuaries are now a “Project” that you can contribute to. Make sure to scroll through the leaderboard to see the standing of your favorite sanctuary. Then get outside, enjoy the outdoors, and start observing!

— Nick Tepper, TerraCorps

As if you needed a reason to appreciate Mom this Mother’s Day, see how our animal friends illustrate the many wonderful traits Mom’s share.

Mom’s are…

Nurturing

Brave

Comforting

Patient

Supportive

Protective

And, of course, loving.

Want to give a gift to make Mom proud?

Show her the love by making a gift to support nature and wildlife in her honor.

A look back at some of the top Facebook posts of the year! Don’t yet follow us on Facebook? Be sure to like our page and set to “see first” to never miss a post.

1. Snowy owl release

2. A sandpiper’s movie debut

*Looks like you can’t stream Piper anymore, but you can buy and watch it via Amazon or Apple.

3. Rare flycatcher spotted on webcam

4. Hiding in plain sight

5. Woodpecker sighting

6. Acorn people

7. Happy Owl-o-ween

8. Hummingbird in action

9. Cuteness Overload

10. Nevertheless, they persisted

Looking forward to another great year on Facebook!