Corvid Project - 3. The Chough

Todays painting unfortunately was a bit rushed, I don't know how I can say this when they're all rushed really but on average I finish around 30 minutes, today I finished around 20 minutes and it does show a bit but I made a mistake with the shape of the head at the beginning and from there on my motivation for the bird had dropped.

This was also the first day of actually using another colour that actually shows up.

Although he still has the rough speed look to him so I'm quite pleased with that, the problem I really have is that I can't seem to regain the look of the Jackdaw I did.

Maybe tomorrow...

The Chough.

• The Choughs' latin name is Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax.
• They are a resident to the UK and mostly found in N Ireland, W Scotland Wales and recently reintroduced to SW England.
• Chough is pronounced as "Chuff".
• They have a red bill and legs unlike other members of the crow family and have a very different look completely which results in them being forgotten as a part of the corvidae family.
• Unfortunately choughs small populations have been in decline putting them in the RSPB's amber list.
• Legend has it the soul of King Arthur departed this world in the form of a Chough.

Choughs are a special bird to me. As a child I would go on holiday to Cornwall often visiting the most southerly point in the UK, The Lizard point. As a child there were no choughs but signs and information about the bird after they had declined to nothing in on the Cornish coast. The last Chough alive in Cornwall died in 1973.

For 28 years the choughs were absent from Cornwall until amazingly in 2001 the birds naturally returned to Cornwall. Now if you visit the South west coast you are likely to spot the "Crow of Cornwall" as it was nicknamed.

To find out more about the Chough you can click here for the RSPB bird guide or to find out more about the Cornish chough and it's story you can click here.

Remember you can still get my designs printed on awesome T-shirts! Just click the link to the left to find out more!

Thank you :)