Inspiration for My Sketching ‘Big Days’ While spending six weeks birdwatching in Costa Rica, I had time to read in the evenings since the days are short in the tropics. I found a well-worn copy of Birding Without Borders written by fellow Oregonian Noah...
John Muir’s description of the Water-Ouzel One might think that California’s most treasured naturalist; John Muir, who was instrumental in founding the Sierra Club and inspiring the establishment of the National Park Service, would count as his favorite...
Hummingbirds are a diverse and fascinating family, with the important ecological role as pollinators, especially in the tropics where both flowering plants and hummers reach their greatest biological diversity. In North America, hummingbirds visit and pollinate such...
The Black-headed Grosbeak is a handsome bird with a lovely melodious song that I never tire of listening to. In spring these birds return from their wintering grounds in Central America to nest in the western half of North America. Their strong bill helps them to...
Below you’ll find some of my bird-themed coloring pages and step-by-step bird sketching pages that I’ve designed over the years for use in working with children, who learn best by doing. Feel free to download and copy them for your nonprofit educational...
A story by John Muir John Muir’s favorite bird was the ‘ Water-Ouzel’, better known nowadays as the American Dipper, to which he devoted an entire chapter of his book The Mountains of California, published in 1894. The dipper is also my favorite bird...
Let’s Draw a Military Macaw! I created this fun step-by-step guide to drawing a Military Macaw as part of my volunteer work in Mexico. The conservation organization, Macaws Forever, will use this in their educational programs in local communities. Feel free to...
I have been blessed to travel frequently; working as a naturalist and bird watching tour co-leader, seeking out such exotic species as Whooping Cranes in Texas, King Eiders in Alaska, Toucans in Honduras and Hornbills in Borneo. Visit my birdwatching travel blogs...
Endemic Birds of the West Indies Colouring Book I’m honored to have collaborated with BirdsCaribbean, the leading bird conservation organization in the Caribbean, to create the Endemic Birds of the West Indies Colouring Book, which features 50 out of the 175 endemic...
Warbler Sketching Workshop Watch the video below to learn all about the warbler family of birds. In the second half I will lead you through a step-by-step demonstration of drawing a Yellow-rumped Warbler. CLICK HERE to download your Yellow-rumped Warbler image to...
