6 March 12

Bluebirds prospecting

westernbluebird, watercolor and prismacolor There is a Western bluebird pair scoping out the nest box by the office. Unfortunately for them, the tree swallows are interested too, and are far more aggressive. Maybe we need more boxes…

Posted by at 05:38 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

27 February 12

Eurasian Collared Dove

(Eurasian collared dove, graphite/prismacolor)! First time I’ve seen the Eurasian collared dove at work… Their range has been spreading throughout this region. I heard them at home at lunch today too.

Posted by at 05:22 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

20 February 12

Trumpeter Swans

Trumpeter swans, Killegrew Lake, watercolor pencil
I’m up in the San Juan Islands, Washington, for a spinning workshop. There are three trumpeter swans on a lake near my friend Jean’s house. I spent a good long while sketching them yesterday.

Trumpeter swans on Killebrew Lake, pen and wash

Posted by at 09:36 AM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

1 February 12

Scrub-jay after the Rain

Western scrub-jay, pen and wash Lots of bird activity today following a shower overnight, which our new weather station tells us provided .04” of rain…

Posted by at 12:45 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

9 November 11

Crows on Branch

American crow, brush and ink

Posted by at 07:48 AM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment [2]

22 October 11

Acorn Woodpecker in the Arboretum

Acorn woodpecker in Arboretum, pen and ink This is only the second time I’ve ever seen this species in Davis. Lots in the chaparral, but not here….

Posted by at 02:45 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment [1]

14 October 11

Anna's hummingbird on nest

Anna's hummingbird on nest atop pinecoe Dusting off my Pentel brush pen, woohoo!! This drawing’s from a photo of a bird on a nest atop a pine cone at North Pond.

Posted by at 11:47 AM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment [1]

29 September 11

Western Bluebird Perched at Dusk

Western bluebird, prismacolor

Posted by at 06:10 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

26 September 11

Young Red-tailed Hawk

young red-tailed hawk; watersoluble graphite A hawk flew into the tree and stayed for a long time, partly obscured by branches. It finally flew out and across the field to the horse paddock, where it perched for long enough for a sketch…

Posted by at 06:44 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

25 September 11

Gulls at Point Reyes

Western Gull hybrid x glaucous-winged gull, Derwent Inktense We spent the day at Point Reyes today, hoping for a massive fallout of warblers given the cold front that had come in. Unfortunately we only got five species, but we did have a lot of time to study gulls.

Western gulls, Point Reyes, Derwent Inktense The Western X Glaucous-winged hybrid, above, was at the Fish Docks near a Western — smudging in the face and not-quite-black primaries set them apart. We then went down to Drake’s Bay for lunch, which we shared with mostly Western gulls.

Western gulls, Point Reyes, Derwent Inktense I’ve been drawing these with Derwent Inktense pencils and adding water. It’s a great way to work fast. The colors are Bark and Indigo.

Posted by at 07:20 PM in Bird of the Day | Link | Comment

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