Y is for Yellow-Bellied Water Skink

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet is a super-quickie, because it's my husband's birthday & we spent last night doing some advance celebrating.

Interesting how many yellow-bellied whatsits are represented in nature's alphabet. I don't recall so many other belly-color names showing up. And I don't think there are any lily-livered skinks, &c., so it's not that they were all named by B Western characters. Which just reminded me of that lovely oath from Zorro, "meal mush & goat's milk!"

Enough tangents! And sorry, skink, for putting you through such contortions to simulate a "Y". You may stretch out now.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, with some Photoshop tweaking.

Oops, one more tangent: today is the day when my Curiotype alphabet finally overtakes Animal Alphabet (assuming I can get that one finished along with birthday doings). Feels a bit sad to have both of them drawing to a close...

X is for Xerus

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

I have a soft spot for squirrels-- they may steal my tomatoes, bury pecans in my potted plants, & generally get up to all sorts of mischief, but it's so much fun to watch their antics! The xerus was a new one to me, but I love their super-upright posture. They look like they've been taking ballet for years.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise tinkered with in Photoshop.

W is for Widgeon

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise tinkered with in Photoshop.

R is for Robin

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet goes out to my niece, Robin.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise fooled with in Photoshop.

Q is for Quindio Glass Frog

This week's entry for Ben Towle'sAnimal Alphabet is the Quindio Glass Frog.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored* & fiddled with in Photoshop.

*With PS it is easy being green.

O is for Octopus

... & obvious. I admit I cheated a bit on this weeks entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet, by using an old drawing, white gouache on black paper, retweaked a bit in Photoshop.