The Beluga Cam: It’s Whale Watching Without the Boat

A new webcam lets you watch belugas—multiple belugas—swimming, feeding, and playing in real time as they migrate to an estuary on Hudson Bay.

Viewer captured screenshot of a mom and baby. (Photo Credit: Explore)

You don’t actually need to go to the coast to whale watch thanks to this new feed. Explore.org has just launched their Beluga Boat Cams, and they’re live streaming some playful and beautiful footage of the curious belugas they come across.

To be clear, you’re not just watching one or two whales. You can easily see 10 in just a minute or so of viewing, with some right up close and nearly hitting the camera and others with their bodies drifting majestically in the distance.

This beluga was up close and friendly with the camera. (Photo Credit: Explore)

The on deck camera lets you experience what would normally be a lucky whale watching trip as the belugas play around the boat, swim underneath to inspect it, and play in the water. The underwater cam, however, makes you feel like you’re scuba diving—though you certainly wish you could swim after them when they float away into the murkier water. Sometimes, it’s like the belugas are right in your face as they nudge the camera and try to get that little bit closer.

About 57,000 belugas migrate every summer to an estuary on Hudson Bay in Churchill, Manitoba. This one group make up about 35 per cent of the world’s wild population of belugas.

The whales look hauntingly beautiful as they swim in groups by the boat. (Photo Credit: Explore)

What’s amazing about this experience is that you don’t just get to see the belugas circling the boat, spinning around in the murky water, and playing hide and seek with the camera. You also get to hear their squeaking communication as they talk to one another, as well as the rocking of the boat and the sound of the waves.

Check out live streaming at Explore.org for their on deck cam and underwater cam. If you’d like to see more, the site also has a bearcam watching brown bears at Brooks River in Alaska’s National Park. Fewer bears use the area in August, but you can check out some of the captured footage and the livestream here.

The camera was made possible thanks to explore.org, a philanthropic media organization with live cams on amazing things around the world. Supported by the Annenberg Foundation, Explore states its mission is "to champion the selfless acts of others, create a portal into the soul of humanity and inspire lifelong learning."