Coastal Birds in February
27th February.
I went out to Pen y Cil after lunch. I had primed a piece of card delicate pink. Constable used red and pink grounds for oil sketches. When I found that there were orange turnstone legs and oystercatcher bills, in strong light, I was pleased to have done that!
In bright sunshine there were five Turnstones and an Oystercatcher directly below me, and as the tide was low they were feeding on barnacles and limpets. The Oystercatcher would probe and pry all around the edge of the limpet rim which eventually loosened it. Then it took the limpet to a place where it could be placed upside-down in a slight dip and its body prised loose and swallowed.
The mother Porpoise and her calf were there again, close to the rocks.
The adult has a tea-plate sized worn patch on her right side just behind and below the dorsal fin. The calf invariably swims that side, and sometimes very close so I wonder if it has rubbed this patch of outer skin. Several times during the breathing surfacing routine they did no more than disturb the surface, which because they were close in, it was possible to see. I made some pencil drawings and this painting when I got back home.
27th February.
I went out to Pen y Cil after lunch. I had primed a piece of card delicate pink. Constable used red and pink grounds for oil sketches. When I found that there were orange turnstone legs and oystercatcher bills, in strong light, I was pleased to have done that!
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| Oystercatchers and Turnstones. All are gouache on gesso primed board |
In bright sunshine there were five Turnstones and an Oystercatcher directly below me, and as the tide was low they were feeding on barnacles and limpets. The Oystercatcher would probe and pry all around the edge of the limpet rim which eventually loosened it. Then it took the limpet to a place where it could be placed upside-down in a slight dip and its body prised loose and swallowed.
 | ||||
| Shags and Turnstones |
The mother Porpoise and her calf were there again, close to the rocks.
The adult has a tea-plate sized worn patch on her right side just behind and below the dorsal fin. The calf invariably swims that side, and sometimes very close so I wonder if it has rubbed this patch of outer skin. Several times during the breathing surfacing routine they did no more than disturb the surface, which because they were close in, it was possible to see. I made some pencil drawings and this painting when I got back home.
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| Cormorants and Porpoises |
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