#2863 "Post-preening Loon"

#2863 "Post-preening Loon"
14x20 inches oils on a smooth panel
mounted on a stretcher frame built by my Dad

Loon behaviour is fascinating and educational. There is always something to learn!

Loons often lift themselves as high in the water as possible and carry out a wing flap. The flapping realigns their feathers and feels good. Kind of like combing your hair. Wing spreading and flapping is most common after preening is complete. The flapping displayed in the painting is a feel-good story about loons that bring so much character to Canadian waters. 

The "penguin dance" is another story. 

A fast-vibrating, tremolo call is sounded when the loon is worried. The tremolo might sound like laughter but if it accompanies the "Penguin Dance", the loon is very stressed. The tremolo and "Penguin Dance" are used when a boat, predator, or intruding loon gets too close. At Singleton we observe that dance too often. As displayed in the following images, the loon rears up in the water with its wings either spread out or clasped against its body and paddles its feet very rapidly if not violently.  If a human is witnessing the "penguin dance" then they are probably the cause of that stress. Please quietly back off to give nature the room that they need and respect nature. 

"Post-preening Loon" is based on another image taken by my friend, John Verburg, a naturalist and terrific photographer. John provides a tremendous source of inspiration for when I choose to paint in the Studio. The Singleton loons have gotten very used to the quiet and respectful way that John photographs these beautiful creatures - reaching out with his very long lens. 

You might notice that southern Ontario is on the southern edge of the breeding area for common loons. With climate change and warming waters, that line is expected to gradually shift northward. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2862 "Pensive Loon"

#2862 "Pensive Loon"
14x20 inches oils on a smooth panel mounted on
a stretcher frame built by my Dad

The Singleton loon looked to be deeply or seriously thoughtful as it paddled slowly toward the viewer under the overcast and foggy skies. Perhaps I am just reading the pensive expression on its strong beak but it fits with the mood. 

This is another image taken by my friend, John Verburg, a naturalist and terrific photographer. John provides a tremendous source of inspiration for when I decide to paint in the Singleton Studio. The Singleton loons have gotten very accustomed to the quiet and respectful way that John photographs these beautiful creatures. John uses his long lens but sometimes the loons just swim up to his boat, completely calm in his presence.

Ontario adopted the common loon (Gavia immer) as its official bird in 1994. The loon's eerie call is associated with the beauty and solitude of Ontario's wilderness. Like most things political, the effort was more talk than walk.

In 2006 I started working with a good friend to build and maintain floating loon nesting platforms throughout Red Horse and Singleton Lakes. We started with a fleet of more than a half dozen platforms. Over the years, the effort got to be too much. The water-soaked cedar log frames can be very, very heavy.  

By 2016 I was down to looking after a single platform near our home on Singleton Lake. Since 2006 the Singleton loons typically produced two loonets a year. Loonets are often simply referred to as "chicks". Sadly, the Singleton loon nest failed in 2022 and 2023. The news was much better in  June 2024 when two loonets were hatched.

The Ontario downward trend in successful loonets per pair is significant and obvious.

Loons had been struggling on the nearby lakes for the decade before 20026 due to human pressures, predation, acid rain and climate change. A fleet of floating platforms at least fifteen feet from shore was essential to bring the loon back. The water levels controlled by a single hydroelectric dam at Marble Rock can also vary considerably, especially during the spring floods. Shoreline nesting sites were often flooded. Predation of the young is prevalent by skunks, raccoons, foxes, snapping turtles and even large fish. Raccoons appear to be the main predator around Singleton Lake. Floating nesting platforms were the answer to most of these threats. 

The adjacent photo shows the remaining loon platform before nesting materials were added. The "Respect Nesting Loon" sign added in 2023 is anchored about 25 feet from the platform to encourage boaters to give the area a wide berth. Singleton loons are especially afraid of paddlers. 

Public education was another important measure to ensure the loon's survival. Boating pressure has increased significantly on the waterways. My friend John Verburg takes terrific images of nature stressing that creatures require respect and space to survive. The Singleton loons have gotten very used to John and his very long lens. People generally respond positively although close intrusions around the nest still unfortunately occur. 

Adult loons are rarely predated except infrequently by bald eagles. Eagles will also attempt to snatch loonets from the water's surface. The family group of bald eagles on Singleton typically consists of 5 or 6 birds and they belong here as well. 

Male and female Common Loons look alike except that the male is larger than the female - something impossible to discern unless they are together. Young Common Loons look similar to winter adults but have more white on their heads and back. This juvenile plumage is maintained through their first summer. In the non-breeding season (winter), the head and bill are grey, the neck is white, and the back plumage is grey with a scalloped pattern.

They are primarily diving birds who hunt for fish underwater in freshwater lakes and ponds. Their bright red eyes is to aid in their vision underwater. Unlike most birds, loons have solid bones which make them less buoyant. They conserve oxygen underwater by slowing their heartbeat. Loons can also flatten their feathers quickly to become more streamlined.

Loon pairs last, on average, six to seven years. Pairs often change when a loon challenger takes over a territory or a mate doesn't return to the territory after the winter. As the owner of a breeding area, the male loon returns first in early April. The female typically follows within a week. 

Eviction from a breeding area is common in both sexes. The evicted loon moves to a non-territorial space nearby and begins to look for a new territory and mate. A loon whose mate dies or is evicted readily attempts to establish a new pair bond with a replacement bird. Experts call this behaviour serial monogamy.

There are four distinct loon calls: 

• tremolo - The tremolo is an aggressive response given when disturbed by a boater or predator. The tremolo signals distress and may urge loons to move to safety. This wavering call also announces its presence at a lake.
• wail - The wail is perhaps the call most frequently heard. A loon will make this haunting call when it becomes separated from the chick or if its mate fails to return. It indicates a willingness to interact.
• yodel - The yodel is a territorial call given only by male loons. The yodel is also an expression of aggression and is given by the male during a confrontation. The yodel is used in territorial disputes, essentially stating to any loons close by – "This is our territory!" Each male has his own signature yodel. If a male moves to a different territory, he will change his yodel.
• hoot - The hoot symbolizes a call of curiosity and/or happiness. Hoots are soft, short calls given to keep in contact with each other: parents might hoot to a chick, or one mate might hoot to another.

A loon family can eat over a ton of small fish a year. The largest fish they can handle is up to about a pound in weight. 

Sometimes a loon will even catch a substantial northern pike!

Adult loons leave Singleton in late September well before the ice forms. This leaves the lake and the fishery to the youngsters who leave just before the lake ices over. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2861 "My Ruffed Grouse Friend"

#2861 "My Ruffed Grouse Friend"
16x20 inches oils on canavs
Started June 4th, 2024

This is the sequel to #2857 "Ruffed Grouse". This particular ruffed grouse would accompany me as I worked on the trails within the forest. The sprouts of grass poking through last season's leaves were a promise of growth to come in the springtime forest. 

I think it is a young male but the sexes of ruffed grouse are challenging to decipher. The only difference is the extent of the dark ruff around the nape of the bird. During courtship activities, the male can fluff those feathers out to look more elegant and perhaps more attractive to the female. 

I took this picture of my new friend on our third encounter. I rarely take my camera into the forest when I am working but hoped that my ruffed grouse would come to see me. He did. I have seen him several times since and we have even walked together on the lane.

This painting was an exercise in "paint what you know". I know the birds and the forest very well. Plus I loved this little creature that should have displayed much more fear than it did toward humans. The simple goal in this painting was to strive to get better and to learn. 

John James Audubon (born Jean-Jacques Rabin, April 26, 1785 – January 27, 1851) was a French-American self-trained artist, naturalist, and ornithologist. 

About 1820, around the age of 35, Audubon declared his intention to paint every bird in North America. In his bird art, he mainly forsook oil paint, the medium of serious artists of the day, in favour of watercolours and pastel crayons (and occasionally pencil, charcoal, chalk, gouache, and pen and ink). As early as 1807, he developed a method of using wires and threads to hold dead birds in lifelike poses while he drew them.

John James Audubon's Birds of America is a portal into the natural world. It contains 435 life-size watercolours of North American birds.  The book was first published as a series in sections between 1827 and 1838, in Edinburgh and London.

My friend and I going for a walk in the Singleton Forest

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2860 "Male Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker"

#2860 "Male Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker"
16x20 inches oils on canvas started May 6th, 2024

We call these perky little woodpeckers "the aerator". They spend their time poking into the soil looking for insects and in doing so, loosen up the soil. They are entertaining to have around the property. This is another image taken by my friend, John Verburg, a naturalist and terrific photographer. The flicker was in the shadow of the dead tree stump working on a hole. The composition is unusual but very interesting.  

Flickers are the only woodpeckers that frequently feed on the ground. Their primary food is insects although they eat fruits, berries, seeds, and nuts. Ants alone can make up 45% of their diet. Northern flickers often break into underground ant colonies to get at the nutritious larvae there, hammering at the soil the way other woodpeckers drill into wood. They will even break up cow dung to eat the insects living within. Their tongues can dart out 2 inches beyond the end of the bill to catch prey. The northern flicker is a natural predator of the European corn borer, an invasive species of moth that costs the U.S. agriculture industry more than $1 billion annually in crop losses. 

The northern flicker or common flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a medium-sized bird of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, and even the Cayman Islands It is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. It typically arrives back at Singleton around April 12th. We keep track...

Over 100 common names for the northern flicker are known, including yellowhammer, clape, gaffer woodpecker, harry-wicket, heigh-ho, wake-up, walk-up, wick-up, yarrup, and gawker bird. Many of these names derive from attempts to imitate some of its calls. It is the state bird of Alabama. This bird's call is a sustained laugh, ki ki ki ki, quite different from that of the pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus). 

Like most woodpeckers, northern flickers drum on objects as a form of communication and territory defence. In such cases, the purpose is to make as loud a noise as possible, so woodpeckers sometimes drum on metal objects.

There are two easily distinguished races of Northern Flickers in North America: the red-shafted form of the West and the yellow-shafted form of the East. The key difference is the colour of the flight-feather shafts, which are either a lemon yellow or a rosy red. 

The Yellow-shafted Flicker have tan faces, gray crowns, and a solid red crescent on the nape. Males also sport a black mustache stripe as painted above. Red-shafted forms have a gray face, brown crown, and no nape crescent, with males showing a red mustache stripe. Hybrids look intermediate and are common at the edges of these two groups' ranges. 

As well as eating ants, northern flickers exhibit a behaviour known as anting, in which they use the formic acid from the ants to assist in preening, as it is useful in keeping them free of parasites.

The undulating flight of the flicker is typical of woodpeckers. The repeated cycle of a quick succession of flaps followed by a pause creates an effect comparable to a roller coaster.  When they fly you’ll see a flash of colour in the wings – yellow if you’re in the East, red if you’re in the West – and a bright white flash on the rump.

The oldest known yellow-shafted form of the Northern Flicker was a male and was at least 9 years, 2 months old when he was found in Florida. The oldest red-shafted form of Northern Flicker lived to be at least 8 years, 9 months old.

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2833 "The Sun of Whiskey Jack Bay"

#2833 "The Sun of Whiskey Jack Bay"
36x38 inches oils on canvas

The goal of this large canvas was to enhance the motion and perhaps the emotion of the scene. The virga falling from the top mixes with the light on the face of the distant clouds. Those brush strokes sweep into the outlines of the deciduous trees at the higher levels of the southern ridge, leading into the coniferous trees that line the shore of Whiskey Jack Bay. The white lines on the calm waters of the bay lead to the black spruces on the southern shore of the entrance to the bay. These trees lead both up and down. A path that sweeps downward leaps into the wave action of Canoe Lake and to the reflections of the black spruce on the western shore. The bright reflection of the soft maple should stop and hold your eye. Vertical lines lead to the source of the colour. The black spruce that surrounds the maple guides the eye back into the sky. The circle remains unbroken. That is what the sun can do to the nature of Whiskey Jack Bay. 

#1841 "October Bay"

This was based on #1841 "October Bay", one of a series of about 50 paintings based on a paddle around Canoe Lake on Sunday, October 2nd, 2016. I was all by myself as the weather forecast of torrential rain was a bit scary. Luckily, I knew about deformation zones. I had the quiet waters of Canoe Lake all to myself. 

I thought that  #1841 "October Bay" deserved a larger format so that is what I did in #1888 "Whiskey Jack Bay". That 22x26 inch stretcher frame had been built by my father Nelson Chadwick (1924-2001) in the 1980s so it was and is a special piece of canvas for me. I am still using stretcher frames built by my Dad from the 6x6 inch post of the family home at 24 East Avenue in Brockville, Ontario. Waste not, want not. 

I recognized the scene as one of the Tom Thomson weather records that I frequently include in my "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" presentation. Tom's record was of a cold frontal painting in autumn. The white box in the following graphic encloses the section of #1888 "Whiskey Jack Bay" that Tom painted.

As a result, this is a story of a journey and three paintings plus a fourth by perhaps Canada's greatest artist, the Canadian version of Vincent Van Gogh, Tom Thomson. They are all different as intended and by design. There are no rules in art and if there were, I would break them all... with intent. 

When I posted this painting on my Fine Art America site, Artificial Intelligence generated the following text:

"Vibrant brushstrokes in red, blue, and green hues capture a shimmering river bordered by trees under a colourful sky. The vivid, autumnal colours suggest a lively, impressionistic take on a natural landscape, evoking a sense of both tranquillity and dynamism."

The words are an automatic, computer-contrived complement but sounded nice...

Day 1 of  "The Sun of Whiskey Jack Bay"

This large studio painting was started at 10 am Wednesday, January 3rd, 2024. I have frozen my hands several times and the winter weather can keep me in the Singleton Studio - especially if the wind chill is significant. Over the intervening months, the canvas was loaded with layers of juicy oil. I was having fun. The design underwent several reinventions. A few people passed along suggestions. I listened as there was something to be said. I learn far more by paying attention than by talking. But in the end, there can only be one person holding the brush. Art is typically a solitary adventure anyway. Luckily, I paint for myself.

The canvas migrated back and forth from the display easel to the working easel conveniently positioned near the wood stove. I would apply oils wherever the inspiration mysteriously guided me until the canvas was all wet. At that point, the painting would shift back to display and further thought and deliberation. Five months of oil can really add up. 

There comes a moment though when one must step away from the easel. That time arrived on D-Day, June 6th. My father along with an entire generation of Canadians fought for ideals and a way of life. "The Greatest Generation" phrase is certainly apt. Their sacrifices and efforts allowed the following generations to flourish. 

A cold low and very wet day sometime in May with "The Sun of Whiskey Jack Bay"

Achieving creative mastery means making a thing and then trying to make a better one. We cherish the freedom to keep doing that until we die. That is a pretty good life thanks to "The Greatest Generation". 

This approach to creative mastery applies both to art and the science of meteorology. Perfection will never be achieved in either and besides, perfection is nebulous, highly over-rated and only in the eyes of someone else. Mastery is a personal thing and should only be in the opinion of the creative. I would encourage never empowering anyone else with that judgment over your work... just my opinion of course. 

There are twenty-eight paintings between January 3rd and today. Each was an opportunity to learn something - maybe even make a "better" piece of art, whatever you think that might be. For me, they are all steps in the creative journey and we have yet to find where that will go. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Series links to the Canoe Lake Collection from October 1916. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2859 Another Male Belted Kingfisher"

 

#2859 Another Male Belted Kingfisher"
14x18 inches oils on canvas
Started May 1st, 2024

I painted the male Belted Kingfisher before in #2852 "Male Belted Kingfisher". The biology of the Belted Kingfisher can be found in that post and will not be repeated here.  I painted the more colourful female in #2858 "Female Belted Kingfisher". I wondered whether it might be more appropriate to call that beauty of a bird a Queenfisher? This is the last of the Belted Kingfisher paintings at least for a while. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2858 "Female Belted Kingfisher"

#2858 "Female Belted Kingfisher"
14x18 inches oils on canvas
Started April 30th, 2024

I painted the male Belted Kingfisher in #2852 "Male Belted Kingfisher". It was only appropriate to also paint the more colourful female. Would it be more appropriate to call this beauty of a bird a Queenfisher? I would do another painting of the male Belted Kingfisher in #2859 "Another Male Belted Kingfisher". 

The biology of the Belted Kingfisher can be found in #2852 "Male Belted Kingfisher" and will not be repeated here. Thank you to John Verburg for taking such inspirational images. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2857 "Ruffed Grouse"

#2857 "Ruffed Grouse"
16x20 inches oils on canvas
Started April 22nd, 2024

The scientific name for the Ruffed Grouse is "Bonasa Umbellus". "Bonasa" is Latin for "good when roasted". Hmmm.. The "umbellus" means a sunshade which refers to the ruff or dark-coloured neck feathers that are particularly large in the male. 

I doubt if the grouse would be flattered by the reasoning behind its Latin monicker. Ruffed Grouse is the preferred common name because it applies only to this species. There are other misleading vernacular names. The ruffed grouse is often called a partridge which is shortened to "pat". People also refer to the ruffed grouse as a pheasant or even a prairie chicken which are the proper names for distinctly different birds.

The first day at the easel roughing in the composition.

It is difficult to distinguish between the male and female ruffed grouse except when the male is displaying his dark ruffed collar of black feathers. Both sexes have a tail marked by a broad, dark band near the tip. The dappled, grayish or reddish Ruffed Grouse is hard to see in the forest. It is easy to hear in the spring when the male puts on a “drumming on air” display to attract some hens. The ruffed grouse population within the Singleton Sanctuary seems to be on the increase - perhaps from the growing number of stick shelters built along the trails. 

I enjoyed an interesting encounter with a ruffed grouse while I was picking up sticks along the Singleton trails. I was working my way along the path and noticed a ruffed grouse following close behind. I stood very still so as not to frighten it. The grouse just came closer pecking at the leaves dislodged from the sticks. We watched each other for perhaps five minutes and then I decided I had better get back to work. The grouse did not flush but kept pecking at the leaves coming ever closer regardless of the noise and chaos amid the leaves. It was a beautiful afternoon encounter in the forest. 

The next day I rode out on my tractor to do some heavy lifting. The grouse seemed to be waiting for me and was oblivious to the tractor. I rarely take my camera while working in the forest but on the third day I did in anticipation of seeing the grouse again. The ruffed grouse was ready and even posed for some beautiful profile images. The ruffed grouse was finding morsels to eat from the jostled leaves. The encounter with my new friend inspired me to paint a ruffed grouse and #2857 based on a photo by my friend John Verburg is the result. I might do another Ruffed Grouse painting of my new friend. 

Collage of pictures of my new ruffed grouse friend

Ruffed Grouse usually occupy mixed deciduous and coniferous forest interiors with scattered clearings. They also live along forested streams and in areas growing back from burning or logging. 

Ruffed Grouse are fairly small with a short, triangular crest and a long, fan-shaped tail. They have short legs and often look slimmer than other grouse species. 

Look for Ruffed Grouse foraging on the forest interior floor for seeds and insects. Displaying males make a deep, airy drumming sound by beating their wings while standing on a log. In spring you’ll likely see lone birds; in summer look for females with broods of chicks. Winter birds form flocks and often eat buds of deciduous trees. 

Ruffed Grouse feed almost exclusively on vegetation, including leaves, buds, and fruits of ferns, shrubs, and woody plants. In fall, soft fruits and acorns become an important part of the diet. Ruffed Grouse's ability to digest foods high in cellulose make it possible for them to survive harsh winter conditions in the northern part of their range, where they feed on buds and twigs of aspen, birch, and willow. Although insects and other invertebrates make up only a small part of the adult grouse's diet, chicks 2 to 4 weeks old depend on this protein-rich prey. 

After mating, female Ruffed Grouse choose a nest site at the base of a tree, stump, or rock in areas with sparse ground cover that give a clear view of predators. Nests may also be built in brush piles, or in the bases of partially open, hollowed-out stumps. The Ruffed Grouse's nest is a simple, hollowed-out depression in leaves on the forest floor, reaching up to 6 inches across and 3 inches deep. Females build the bowl-shaped nest and typically line the bowl with vegetation that they pluck from the edge of the nest site. 

• Clutch Size: 9-14 eggs 
• Egg Length: 1.5-1.6 in (3.78-4.14 cm) 
• Egg Width: 1.1-1.2 in (2.9-3 cm) 
• Incubation Period: 23-24 days 
• Egg Description: Eggs are milky to cinnamon buff sometimes spotted with reddish or brown.
• Condition at Hatching:
• Precocial; chicks hatch covered in sandy to brown down with a triangular patch of black feathers around the ears. Chicks can walk and feed themselves within 24 hours of hatching

I use these art posts to also relearn or discover for the first time, some natural history facts about the world around us. It is more of a challenge to assist and preserve something that one does not understand or appreciate. Thank you for reading this far...  Education is a way of life and may it never get old.

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick 

#2856 "White-tailed Deer Flags"

#2856 "White-tailed Deer Flags"
14x18 inches oils on canvas
Started April 21st, 2024

These deer were not raising the white flag of surrender but rather a warning that "man was in the forest". The large white tails flop back and forth as the deer bounce away from the intruder. It is a common sight within the Singleton Sanctuary when I am walking. If I happen to be painting, the first thing I hear is the snort of a deer surprised to find me in their territory. They do not typically flag in such circumstances but quietly fade away in the forest. 

There were seven deer in that tangle of hooves. If you can count all of the ears, simply divide by two. If you end up with a fraction, round up that number to the next whole number to get the correct number of deer. You must have missed an "ear" in your counting.  I call this herd of deer the Group of Seven after some guys who I also find very inspirational. 

Ear number 8 is one that you likely missed. I painted it as I saw it... 

This photo by my friend John Verburg captured the fleeting moment of encountering nature. This is the typical back-end view of white-tailed deer when strolling in the forest. This fact also explains why the deer are given that name.  It was his new favourite image and I must say that it was also one of mine. 

White-tailed deer are the most common and widely distributed large mammal in North America. In Ontario, they are the most numerous of the province's four deer (cervid) species which also include moose, woodland caribou and American elk. 

The white-tailed deer is also known commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer. It is native to the Americas as far south as Peru and Bolivia where it inhabits high mountain terrains of the Andes. The northern white-tailed deer is the subspecies found from the Ontario-Manitoba border eastward to Cape Breton. The white-tailed deer is the most visible large mammal in southwestern Ontario. The deer's breeding season, or rut, takes place in the fall with young born almost seven months later toward the end of May. 

In the 1700s, animal pelts were forms of currency just as dollar bills are today. The most valuable animal pelt was that of the largest, male white-tailed deer - the "buck." In 1748 a barrel of whiskey held the same value of "five bucks." Another document from 1748 laments a robbery that occurred around present-day Ohio where the traveller was "robbed of the value of 300 bucks."

Even back then, one "buck" didn't necessarily mean one deer pelt. A  single "buck" was reserved for a particularly excellent deer pelt harvested in the winter when the fur was thickest. A summer deer pelt is not as lush and thus not as valuable. It could take several summertime deer pelts to equal a full "buck." 

Multiple pelts of smaller animals, like beavers or rabbits, could also be combined to equal the value of one "buck." This connection of the word "bucks" with currency continued even after coinage of U.S. dollars began in 1792. Dollars have kept the nickname of "bucks" ever since. 

As you can see, I use these art posts to also relearn or discover for the first time, some natural history facts about the world around us. It is more of a challenge to assist and preserve something that one does not understand or appreciate. Thank you for reading this far... Education is a way of life and may it never get old.

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick