POLLINATORS IN ACTION – Painting  feathers of Birds Pollinators: Sunbirds, Honeyeaters and Hummingbirds

To sign up for this program send an email to [email protected] with the note  WORKSHOP in the subject line. We will email you the ZOOM ID and password.

Practicing wet-on-wet brushstrokes.

Art supplies:

• Watercolor or water-based paint
• Sturdy light plain paper
• Brushes
• Container of water
• Paper towel (few pieces)
• Plate or small cups or plate for color mixing
• Crayons (optional)
• Newspaper or table covering (optional but recommended)

Some of 1,089 species of birds have been recorded as effective pollinators, or about10 per cent of all bird species. Generally speaking , bird pollination is more common in regions where plant growth and flowering occur at all times of the year. In more seasonal regions, the bird pollinators are more likely to be migrant species. Birds can carry large loads of pollen a long way, thereby connecting dispersed plant populations or individuals. Birds are also less likely to be put off by bad weather in the way the bees are, and there is a good evidence that birds often feature as pollinators where insects fail to thrive or even exist, such as oceanic islands.  —Timothy Walker, Princeton University Press