Pastel on Colourfix paper     

49 X 41cm.   (Original SOLD)

I have recently returned from a field trip to Kangaroo Island... an amazing place I have been visiting constantly for over 30 years to research the local wildlife. One of my very favourite creatures there is the gentle tammar wallaby which is a shy and speedy little animal only about 45cm in height. Lost due to land clearing on much of the Southern Australian mainland they are happily still common on K.I. There are no foxes on the island though feral cats are a bit of a problem. Tammars spend much of the day hiding or resting in dense scrub but emerge at dusk to feed where they can often be observed at quite close range. But when frightened they vanish so fast, if it weren't for the receding rapid beats of little padded feet, you might think they had been a figment of your imagination.  At our little cottage on the coast of K.I. they come right up to the front steps to say hello and sometimes we are fortunate enough to glimpse their miniscule joeys peering out of the mum's pouches.

This pastel painting which I just completed shows the characteristically cautious demeanour of a lone tammar as she checks me out from the relative security of nearby scrub