Friday, October 10, 2014

SKETCHBOOK: "Cicada Hawk"

About a month ago, I noticed what looked to be a "hornet" burrowing into the ground by my back screened porch door. Not allowed...so I sprayed it. But not to let a perfect specimen go to waste, I decided to sketch it!  As my daughter, Courtney, informed me...this was not a hornet.  It was actually a "CICADA KILLER" (or HAWK).  I looked up the insect online, and was pretty creeped out by it.  This is a female, and she was making a nest in the ground. They then sting and kill about 3 to 4 cicadas, bring them to the den, and start laying eggs in the cicadas.  Nasty.
But this lovely lady looks cool...and I couldn't resist a couple of evenings of sketch time with her.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

What fun what fun! Just decided to check and was surprised to see this lovely lady! Excellent work. Think you might have missed your calling...you do bugs GOOD!
Mom