Last week we rode our bikes around Lake Tuggeranong from where I made this sketch of the Bullen Ranges, topped by fast moving clouds.

The Bullen Range from Lake Tuggeranong, pen and ink, 6 June 2014.

While we were eating our picnic lunch we had a number of avian visitors, not just the regular Silver Gull (Larus novaehollandiae) a common inland bird. I’d put my drawing tools away to eat lunch and so I was caught off guard when a black swan decided to pay us a visit. All I did was take photos, rather than draw! Here are some of those photos.

Purple Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio) and Black Swan (Cygnus atratus).

And another.

Black Swan (Cygnus atratus).

I’ve seen, probably the same swan, at that part of the lake on previous bike rides so next time I’ll have my pen at the ready!

Further along the bike path we spotted several Australian Darter’s (Anhinga melanogaster) drying their wings on the Sea Scout’s jetty (given we are over a hundred kilometers from the coast I always enjoy the irony of this name). I did have my pen out, but they were not happy with us approaching and flew off before I could sketch them.

An Australian Darter (Anhinga melanogaster) in a fairly common pose.