Hopeful roulrouls

This morning the text for the new goodeid tank was ok'd, so I could add it to the ID I put together earlier in the week. This made it the sign too big, so I split the text off onto another ID then printed them both and after trimming to size, laminated them. As the new tank/display has been put in the entrance to the Aquarium, there is no lightbox or other ID holder ready to put the signs into. So I calculated measurements for a board to hold both IDs and filled out a maintenance job request form with the details for size,colour and countersunk screw holes etc. The signs are ready... now I just need to wait until the board is attached to the wall (possibly attached to batons) above the tank before I can put them up.

I replaced a few birds IDs in our tropical bird aviary, which is indoors. The IDs are fiddly to replace so I was a little while in there struggling with proceedings. As I crouched to the floor, cutting loose laminate off of some signs to tidy them up, a male roulroul partridge wandered slowly up to me, making this wonderful high pitched whistle-like call. I was careful not to make any sudden moves and he gradually got braver; I think he was hopeful that I might have food. His calls and interest drew in some of the other individuals of this species in the aviary... so I ended up with 4 males and 3 females gathered around me whistling quietly to each other and looking at me with great curiousity. They are such cute little birds, quite endearing. Eventually they wandered off as I got on with my work and was obviously not about to offer them any food. Cupboard love!

Walking back to the studio from the aviary I saw our three baby meerkats out in the sunshine with the rest of the troop. They were running around scrabbling at the sand soil and between the adults with their little tails held jauntingly upwards. Such little sweeties.

I got round to some painting today, late this afternoon.... well, sort of. As I have as good as caught up on computer work/replacing IDs etc I can get back to my next illustration; which is to be a flagtail characin - another fish. I had done the drawing at the end of Feb, so today I could get on with preparing the painting surface; 300grm watercolour paper. The paint I use is gouache and I mix my own black (adding alizarin crimson and ultramarine to lamp black to "liven" it up) in enough quantity for several fish illustration backgrounds. Being gouache I can just add water to reconstitute the paint when it has dried, back to a lovely thick yoghurty consistency. I dampened the paper and with one of my bigger brushes coated the paper with the lovely rich gloopy black paint and then left it to dry. Not a very exciting bit of painting, it has to be said, but now it's ready for the more exciting stuff.
Then I carefully traced my drawing; ready to transfer to the black background when it is completely dry and hardened off. But that will be next week now as I have come to the end of my working "week" at the zoo. I only work Monday to Wedsnesdays.