Merlins didn’t exist for me until earlier this year… well, unless you’re counting the wizard… until I took a raptor identification class with the renowned raptor expert Bud Anderson. We’ve been fortunate to volunteer for a research study by monitoring two urban merlin nests this spring. As we make our notes, we get to know these fierce little falcons.
You probably already know the peregrine falcon’s superpower is speed, and like all falcons, the merlin has it’s own superpower: acrobatic flight. It’s amazing to watch their acrobatics while chasing off invading crows. So I wanted to capture some of that agility in this painting. Notice the fanned tail and wing angle that allows it to literally push against the wind for quick turns as it pursues a dragonfly.
All migrating birds have another superpower: the ability to sense the magnetic field. And the last several years, researchers are cracking the biology of just how they manage to do it, and believe me, how they do it is as magical as the wizard. In the background is my scientific illustration style interpretation of entanglement and superposition, which is believed to play a part in helping birds migrate using earth’s magnetic field. Pretty amazing creatures!
You can watch a time lapse video of me creating this painting at https://youtu.be/DQyBP7nGf-o
Oil & Acrylic on Panel, 2019
