Kingfishers, Blackbirds and Turtles

We birded for the Great Backyard Bird Count last year in two feet of snow or more. This year's GBBC starts tomorrow. Instead of two feet of snow though we had temperatures in the mid-60s today. A welcome change but one that can't, and shouldn't, last.

Still I took advantage of it to do some field sketching at Morris Arboretum. Like another trip there last Sunday a male Belted Kingfisher was evident. And he seemed to stay in one place so that I could sketch him through the scope. Normally he just doesn't stay in the same place or pose for long. I wonder if it's possible that there is less food available for him and so he just goes to a few choice spots overlooking the open water waiting to see fish movement. That's just a wild guess. In any case it's been a pleasure to have some chance to draw him.

All of the drawings but one above are done with Pitt Artists Pens. The other Kingfisher is done with a 4B pencil. These are very different media. Normally I like the greater expressiveness, due to fluctuating line weight, that a soft pencil offers. But I've never found myself happy with them when field sketching. Maybe the lines are too loose and inexact. I'm not sure. But for some reason I favor the more inflexible pen line. Out of curiosity today though I did one in pencil. As you may notice one 'bad' side of using a pen is that you can't erase. But that's fine. I know I'll have to live with what I put down so I don't worry it to death. In the case of the massive bill on the Red-winged Blackbird above though you sometimes have to live with some obvious mistakes.

Last Monday I heard my first singing Song Sparrow. Today at Morris I heard more as well as many singing male Red-winged Blackbirds, another first for the season. Along with them I believe the first basking turtles I've seen. Often I tell myself I ought to sketch them. Today was such a beautiful day and I had some free time so I also did a sketch of them. It could use more work. But often live field sketches are like that. You capture what is there and then use that as the basis of something more developed in the studio. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of these kingfishers or turtles.

First Field Sketches of Spring 2010

Spring has finally arrived here, though not yet with a vengeance, at least as far as migrants and returning breeders go. I've seen a few warblers, both Yellow-rumps and Palms, and I've seen one Eastern Phoebe and heard three or four. Eastern Towhees are conspicuous and there are many dueling birds, for mates and territory I'd guess. But still I just haven't see all that many birds yet.

I'm well aware of this because I've been out for 3-4 hours each of the last three days, birding and sketching. I'm determined that this is the year when I'll become an accomplished field sketcher. As you can see I have a very, long way to go!

But you have to start somewhere and one place is to reach for the sketchbook rather than the camera. That's what I've done the last few days. First the sketchbook, then maybe the camera, if I want to remember something like the wing bars of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet or the facial markings of a Blue Jay.

Part of the pleasure of field sketching I think is similar to swimming. It's easy to say: I can't do it; that's impossible; or something similar. But once you take the plunge you find out it's not so bad and it can become addictive.

One moment that expresses that today was a scene of a Red-bellied Woodpecker hanging upside down on a limb a few feet away from a right-side-up Robin. I've sketched that in just a few quick lines here. I don't think I could ever get that with a photo. And though it doesn't look like much it still could become the seed of a painting. The ability to draw this type of actual encounter in nature is part of the reason it can become addictive I think.

I was out for 6 hours today, in two different locations. I ended up at a blind with feeders in front of it at Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education. I have to confess by that time I did only a few sketches, e.g. the Blue Jay here, and then resorted to a camera to end the day. Eventually I hope to do a more finished drawing of the female Red-winged Blackbird which I've sketched here. But I also have some photos for details.

Other birds sketched include: Carolina Chickadee, Yellow-rumped Warbler, American Robin, Eastern Towhee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Northern Cardinal, Cowbird as well as a groundhog and a Jack-in-the-Pulpit.