Pipevine Swallowtails (Battus philenor)

This is a gouache painting that I recently finished, painted from some photographs that I took while on a summer vacation in the western part of Virginia. These colorful butterflies are found in North and Central America.

Rabbit Bench

It looks like a good place to sit and draw rabbits!

Goldfinch Drawings

Apparently goldfinches are very common in the area where I live but I hadn't seen many until I put a thistle feeder in a tree on my patio. Can't see the birds for the trees! :) I've tried several times over the years to put a feeder in various places around my yard but the flying squirrels seem to find them and then find cozy nesting places in the attic. Finally I think all of the necessary patching of places where they can sneak in are fixed! (I wonder if flying squirrels like thistle. I have to admit that they are cute. At least the trapper I found to remove them from the attic releases them in his woods when he goes home. Apparently a few of ours got loose in his house and his wife wasn't too happy with him. Yikes!)

Here are a few drawings of the goldfinches that visit the feeder. The males are turning bright yellow for mating season. I included a photo I took from the window.



hmm..