A Bird’s-Eye View: Osprey Monitor Jan Roy Unveils Public Artwork in Newburyport

Over the past seven years, Jan and Jim Roy have spent countless hours marveling at an Osprey pair that returns each year to a nesting platform visible from their house along the salt marsh in Newbury.

As volunteer nest monitors in Greenbelt’s Osprey Program, the couple has become intimately familiar with the raptors’ behavior and daily rituals during breeding season — from building out their nest to mating, hunting, and raising chicks — while collecting and submitting reports along the way.

Inspired by her close observation of this Osprey pair over the years, Jan, a longtime painter, wanted to portray the landscape from their unique vantage point, showcasing not only the birds but also the vast salt marsh and sky they call home.

In her piece, “Counting the Osprey Eggs,” she does just that. The painting features two agitated Osprey hovering in the foreground, while a tiny human figure can be seen in the distant background, up on a ladder inspecting their nest for eggs, as a dog sits nearby. A vibrant, large-scale reproduction of the painting was permanently installed this past June along the Clipper Rail City Trail in Newburyport.

“I really wanted to capture the sheer expanse of the marsh and sky from the Osprey’s perspective,” says Jan, who typically paints abstract urban landscapes. Those who visit Art in the Barn may be familiar with her work, which she also shows in galleries around Cape Ann and beyond.

Both Jan and Jim love being part of the Osprey Program and connecting with other nest monitors. “It’s a great little community of people from all walks of life,” she says. “At the annual dinner, I love hearing all the stories from people monitoring nests that I would otherwise never get a chance to meet.”

You can see “Counting the Osprey Eggs” along the Clipper City Rail Trail in Newburyport, between Water Street and Harrison Street.