On the Ice - Mallards
Acrylic on board

29'' x 34'' (framed)

















These birds were sketched during a really cold spell in January at the WWT Martin Mere resevre in Lancashire. After sketching pintail and other ducks in one of the main hides, I returned to the comfort of the cafe to thaw out, and came across a large group of resting ducks (mostly mallard, but a few goldeneye also) on a frozen pond out of the window. The late afternoon light transformed these common and often overlooked ducks into birds of incredible beauty.