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Marine and coastal wonders of Woollongong / Dharawal land
The tote bag design for the ESA's 2022 conference - inspired by some coastal and marine plants and animals of New South Wales, and Dharawal country in particular. I was really grateful to be asked once again by the Ecological Society of Australia to create a...
New ‘Gondwana Rainforest Birds’ tea towel design
The new Gondwana Rainforest Birds tea towel design has just landed in the Paperbark Writer store. It features close-up ‘portraits’ of 15 native birds species found in the Gondwana Rainforests World Heritage Area that spans parts of south east Queensland and north east...
A drawing is more than a photo
How it all started. I saw a pair of peregrine falcons mating, and was compelled to jot down the sighting in a very simple way. A few weeks ago I started a daily drawing practice. Although I didn't realise it at the time. I just happened upon a pair of peregrine...
A new nature journal for the Taronga Western Plains Zoo!
The lovely Kelly Pfeiffer - whose encouragement was instrumental for the publication of my previous book Take this Book for a Walk in 2020 - recently commissioned me to create a nature journaling resource for Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, New South Wales. I...
Leaf me alone! Are the Pink Slugs of Mt Kaputar pretending to be leaves?
21st February 2022, 6 pm The light is fading, and the wet stems of Ribbony Gums and Snow Gums are dark grey against a white overcast sky. The bare sloping rock face shines with water, water is sponged up by the verdant green mosses, and it saturates some fire-scorched...
Free grassy woodland colouring book to download
Wondrous Box-Gum Grassy Woodlands: A colouring exploration of a diverse ecosystem celebrates the threatened ecological community of the same name. This book was commissioned by the Molonglo Conservation Group, with the support of the ACT Government and National...
A walk in the green room
Binna Burra, September 2021 The forest always gives so much. But I need to slow down, to observe, to open myself to its abundance, for this to happen. As I walk into the forest I see the different layers, shapes, colours of green that are the leaves, foliage,...
The helpful and benignly addictive world of INaturalist.
The White-banded Hunter Hawkmoth, Theretra oldenlandiae The Navajo recognized and remembered over 700 different types of insects, to three levels of classification.1 Most of these insects did not have a practical ‘use’ for the Navajo (e.g. food). The vast majority of...
Spiky grubs, tiny bats and the giant stinging tree
Meet the punk caterpillar who's willing to take on some of Australia's most fearsome plants (the Gympie Stinger and Shiny-leaved Stinging Tree), and spends part of its life masquerading as a bat. In recent years it's also begun to devour the Giant Stinging Tree, in...
Recent journal pages, and why a fountain pen is my new best friend
Ink sketch created with TWSBI eco pens I love drawing with ink for many reasons (see note below for more details). But the disposable nature of many ink pens has never felt good to me. I enjoy drawing with dip pens, but their nibs have to be cleaned and replaced...
A Tale of Three Scrubwrens
Australia has an enormous variety of little brown birds. Some of these are scrubwrens, of the genus Sericornis (The name ‘Sericornis’ refers to the soft, silky plumage of these birds). Three species of Sericornis live in the forests of Lamington National Park, near my...
Introducing the nature scroll: a compact, lightweight way to record your next journey
Nature scroll action in the rainforest! I really like to enhance my travel with nature journaling. Be it a bushwalk, or a journey to another state or country, I always find that journaling enriches my experience and creates a unique memento. Treasured memories from...
Tales of Science
Return of the bellbirds?
Bellbirds are cute, they make beautiful chiming noises, but they also kill trees. And now they’re back at Binna Burra, after a long absence. What will happen next?
How do you describe a fig?
With pen and pencils, I try to catch glimpses of the world of a strangler fig. And of the people who are studying them.
Damning report into threatened species conservation in Queensland
I rarely get political on this blog, but what follows is an important part of my story, and of the struggle we're in to try to save threatened species in Queensland. A few years ago I resigned from my job in the Threatened Species Unit of the Queensland Government out...
Drawing on Queensland’s present to recreate New Zealand’s past
This story starts and ends with a duck. It also includes volcanoes, subtropical rainforest, an idyllic lake and a team of dedicated scientists. But let’s begin with the duck. I met the duck in Germany, in 2008. The lovely Ray, my palaeobotanist partner, was...
She didn’t need much.
She didn’t need much. While I was busy with my own small worries, my own daily life, this last two years, she was just quietly getting on with her own. I didn’t know it, but she was less than a kilometre from where I live, maybe a lot closer than that. For there are...
How to draw a grassland Part 3: What lies beneath?
Go for a wander in the grasslands of the Riverina and you might notice an abundance of holes in the ground. If you see critters scurrying in and out of the holes (like the meat ants in the picture above) at least you know what type of beast lives in them. But often...
Nature journaling
How do you describe a forest? (or woodland, shrubland, grassland…)
Forests are hard to describe. So much complexity, so much thriving life. Colours, light and forms change with the seasons, and over time. How to fit all that into words or pictures? The ways to describe a forest are infinite, and each approach will also be influenced...
A daily drawing challenge
About 2 weeks ago I embarked on a daily drawing challenge. That is, to draw something from nature every day. Why nature? Because spending time in nature makes me happy! Why drawing? Because it makes me slow down, and discover wonders by observing closely. Why a daily...
An early morning adventure, featuring a very good boy
One of the lovely things about living in Beechmont is that we never really know what we're going to find on our early morning dog walk...
Transitions
Recently, a friend told me that she was going to transition. From being a she to becoming a he. It’s something she’d wanted since puberty. I could hear the relief in her voice, and a happy anticipation of a new, precious and exciting life ahead. But many people find...
‘It’s made me see nature in a different way then what i did before.’
Panel from the opening cartoon of 'Take this Book for a Walk' Ever had one of those days when you feel like you're swimming through mud, and getting nowhere? Or maybe feeling bewildered at all the strange things happening in the world, and exhausted by it all? This is...
Reflecting on place
How much do you know about the place where you live? No doubt you know where to buy food and other essentials. Perhaps you know where to catch the bus / tram / train, or the quickest way to drive to work or school. But what about the landform you live on? In this week of reconciliation, how much do you know about the humans who first lived in this place? And what about the plants and animals who share your place? Are they recent arrivals, or are they the modern descendants of very ancient lineages? Use this activity to reflect on your place.
Forest portraits
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Cartoons
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Wildlife illustration
Free froggy colouring book to download
Follow the Southern Bell Frog’s journey, from tiny egg, to tadpole, to a young frog, in this beautiful colouring book. Yours to download for free!
Terrific things from Tassie
This year’s conference bag design for the Ecological Society of Australia is revealed.
Impressions of Barambah
I visited the Barambah Environmental Education Centre (about 50 km west of Gympie, Queensland) back in August. I ran a nature journaling workshop for the staff, and did some field work for a series of illustrations for a little book about the centre. Here are some...
Return of the bellbirds?
Bellbirds are cute, they make beautiful chiming noises, but they also kill trees. And now they’re back at Binna Burra, after a long absence. What will happen next?
Competition winners, and nature journaling in the rainforest
Thank you to everyone who entered the ‘name the species on the ESA 2018 bag design’ competition. Many high-quality entries were received, and I was most impressed with the species ID skills of the entrants. Special mentions go to: Eve Hayden and Gregg Muller for...
Recent drawings and a new cartoon
When I started drawing I was fascinated by line more than anything else. In the last few weeks I've been reminding myself of the importance of tone - lights and darks, and how the contrast of these can bring drama to a picture. I took some photos of the gorgeous wet...