Before moving to North Carolina in 2009 I didn’t know the joy of encountering Box Turtles in my own backyard. It isn’t an everyday event and I consider myself very lucky when I see them a few times each year. I know they are always near since they have a home range that is normally a diameter of just 750 feet! So if one is born in the middle of my yard they may scarcely visit my neighbors.

My encounters with them in the backyard inspired this painting and I wanted to include another rarely seen creature that lives in the same habitat so I chose the American Woodcock. Shaped like a shorebird with a bill designed to catch earthworms, this bird is also known by many other names. Some of the more memorable are Bogsucker, Mudsnipe, and Labrador Twister.

I envisioned the two meeting in this little clearing and neither much caring to see the other since they both tend to be solitary creatures.

This is the original painting so there is only one. It is painted in acrylic on a 1 1/2” thick gallery wrapped canvas and the scene continues on the edges for a very finished look. No framing is needed, but if you like frames it can also be framed.  The size of this piece is 16” x 20”.