Beetles are the most diverse group of organisms on earth, representing a fifth of all living organisms, and there are over 4,000 species in the UK and Ireland alone. Here are three I’ve met since starting sketching…
I found this Lesser Stag Beetle on a path near our house last week. It’s nocturnal, which explains its behaviour, or lack of it, as it lay inert throughout the sketching. I’m using pencil at the moment, which works well with a Lexington grey ink wash, giving a fairly seamless transition from line to form.
‘HB’ pencil, water-brush with dilute Lexington grey ink, A6
Here’s is a tiny sketch of a Bloody-nose Beetle (?) I found on a coastal path earlier this summer. Its feet aren’t that large in life, but it’s beautifully rounded and glossy like a worn bead or pebble.
Water-brush with Lexington grey ink, watercolour, A8?
And a dead Ground Beetle (carnivorous, eats slugs and snails) I found in the garden last year.
Fountain pen with carbon ink, watercolour, A7
Mostly drawing 