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Wildlife Paintings
Herbivore
Herbivore
The definition is determined by an animal's diet.
The word 'herbivore' is derived from Latin words:
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Herba, meaning "a plant"
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Vorare, meaning "to devour or eat"
Any animal that only eats plants is classified as an herbivore. The term stems from the Latin words herba "a plant" plus vorare "devour, swallow".
All herbivore paintings are on this page. Click on each image or scroll down to see larger images of the paintings and to read interesting facts about each animal and the conservations efforts that are currently underway.
Przewalski's Horse - Faces the Storm
(Soft Pastel)
Przewalski's Horse - Faces the Storm
(Soft Pastel)
Przewalski’s horses (Equus ferus przewalskii), a critically endangered species from Mongolia, is considered to be the last truly wild horse in existence.
The Przewalski’s Horse has a special physique and one can easily see the differences to a domestic horse. Normally Przewalski’s Horses do not have a withers of more than 147 cm. Additionally their strong bones and the thick neck let them appear tough and robust.
Characteristical, they have an eel-colored back and a special coat with colors like grey-yellow or red-brown. The impression of a tough little wild horse becomes completed through the dark tail and mane as well as the massive and big head.
The Przewalski’s Horse gets its name from the Russian explorer Nikolai Przhevalsky. Nikolai Przhevalsky was the first to describe the Przewalski’s horse as he found a skeleton of the horse during his expedition in 1881. The name Przewalski is of polish origin and is pronounced as she-val-skee. The horse is also known as the Dzungarian horse or Asiatic wild horse. It is famous as the takhi horse amongst locals of Mongolia.
The tough little horse has sharp hooves and a strong kick that can be deadly for any predator. Normally, the Przewalski’s Horse makes use of its sharp hooves to dig in the ground in search for water.
Przewalski’s horses nearly became extinct in the wild in 1969, leading conservation scientists around the world to begin breeding programs of captive P horses in the hope of saving the species. The captive-bred individuals were reintroduced to the wild in the 1990s and, today, several healthy herds can be seen roaming the steppes of central Asia.
The Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences’ (CVMBS) Winnie Carter Wildlife Center (WCWC) is the new home for two Przewalski’s horses (P horses). At the WCWC, the P horses will help teach veterinary and undergraduate students about exotic animal care and the importance of species conservation.
The 8- and 9-year-old P horses were born at San Diego Safari Park and, because their genetics were already well-represented in the park’s P horse population, they were sent to Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas.
Though the P horses were raised in captivity, they had little direct contact with humans and maintain the shy personality they share with their wild cousins.
The IUCN "Red List of Threatened Species" classifies Przewalski horses as Endangered (Increasing).
Reference photo for this artwork is licensed royalty-free from Shutterstock.
Information about Pzrewalski's Horse is from several websites including AboutAnimals.com; Smithsonian National Zoo; Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences; and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Copyright © 2023 Karen Conger All Rights Reserved.
Grevy's Zebra Mother and Foal
(Digital Pen)
Grevy’s zebra foals are born all legs and ears.
Ears standing to full attention, neck arched, muscles tensed, nearly 1000 lbs of alert zebra ready for action. Watch a Grevy’s zebra adult male presiding over his territory and one begins to understand the majesty of this species. Indeed in 1882, Menelik II, Emperor of Abyssinia (now Ethiopia), thought the zebra was so regal that he presented one as a gift to the President of France, Jules Grévy. And so the name Grevy’s zebra was coined.
The Grevy’s is quickly distinguishable from its plains and mountain zebra counterparts due to its charming large round ears, and because it is tailor-made for the semi-arid climate where it lives. This zebra can survive for five days without water.
The plains of Africa are filled with zebras, their distinctive coats forming a sea of black and white across the continent’s landscapes. But in dry northern Kenya the unique Grevy’s zebra makes its home, and less than 2,500 of these special animals remain.
The IUCN "Red List of Threatened Species" classifies Grevy's zebra as Endangered (Stable).
Reference photo for this artwork is from WCN/GZT.
Information about Grevy's zebras can be found on the official websites of Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), Grevy's Zebra Trust (GZT), and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Copyright © 2023 Karen Conger All Rights Reserved.
Giraffa Camelopardalis – Tallest of All (Digital Pen)
Giraffa Camelopardalis – Tallest of All (Digital Pen)
The Nubian giraffe, scientific name Giraffa Camelopardalis, is the tallest living animal in the world. It is three-horned, measures up to 19 feet tall, and weighs up to two tons.
World Giraffe Day (WGD) is an exciting annual event initiated by Giraffe Conservation Foundation to celebrate the tallest animal on the longest day or night (depending on which hemisphere you live!) of the year – 21 June – every year!
The Nubian giraffe population is down 98 percent and lives only on protected lands in Kenya. According to the IUCN "Red List of Threatened Species", this subspecies is Vulnerable (Decreasing).
Reference photo for this artwork is licensed royalty-free from Shutterstock.
Information about the Nubian giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardalis) can be found on the official websites of Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF), and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Copyright © 2023 Karen Conger All Rights Reserved.
Stripes like a zebra, the body of a horse, and a head like a giraffe ...
The okapi is one of the oldest and most distinctive mammals left on earth. The quiet, beautiful and enigmatic animal has only been known to Western scientists since 1901 due to its secretive and reclusive nature. However, the local people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the only country where the okapi is found, have known about the animal for thousands of years. Though this endangered giraffe relative is a culturally respected animal and has been protected in the country since 1933, slash-and-burn agriculture, illegal gold mining and bushmeat poaching threaten its existence.
For over 30 years, the Okapi Conservation Project has never faltered in its ability to withstand civil wars, rebel attacks and insecurity in an area ripe with political strife and uncertainty. It’s this standing loyalty that OCP has developed a strong trust within the community, allowing their conservation programs to thrive and expand under arduous conditions. Throughout DRC’s turmoil, the Okapi Conservation Project has remained the primary supporter of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve and protector of okapi.
Okapis are more commonly known as the "forest giraffe" and they are the only living relatives of giraffes. The okapi and giraffe share a number of common features - elongated necks; long, dark tongues; and gaited walks where each mammal steps with the same front and hind leg on eah side rather than moving alternate legs like other ungulates (hoofed animals).
Okapis weigh between 440-770 lbs, and have a very thick skin covered with a velvety fur coat, covered with only body hair, which repels water. The hind quarters and tops of their legs are covered with black and white stripes. The ankles are white and have a dark spot above each cloven hoof.
Shy and usually solitary, okapis are nearly impossible to observe in the wild. Their large ears detect predatory disturbances, while the distinguishing brown and white marks on their rump act as camouflage in the forest. To avoid leopards, they stay in one place on a 'nest' for the first six to nine weeks of their life, which is much longer than calves of other species are known to do. Okapi mothers produce infrasonic calls at around 14HZ to communicate with their calves, which is useful in dense forest and cannot be heard by humans.
The IUCN "Red List of Threatened Species" classifies the Okapi as Endangered (Decreasing).
Reference photo for this artwork is licensed royalty-free from Shutterstock.
Information about the Okapi can be found on the official websites of WCN (wildnet.org); AfricaGeographic.com; and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Copyright © 2023 Karen Conger All Rights Reserved.
Okapi - Velvet Ghost of the Forest
(Digital Pen)
Koala – Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (Colored Pencil)
Australia has listed the koala as an endangered species across most of its east coast, after a dramatic decline in numbers. The once-thriving marsupial has been ravaged by land clearing, bushfires, drought, disease and other threats.
Australia has been urged to do more to protect koalas from rapidly diminishing habitats and climate change. The species was listed in 2012 only as "vulnerable" in those states and territory. Save The Koala states that despite the rapid deterioration, "governments are dithering. There is currently no legislation, anywhere in the country, that can protect Koalas and Koala habitat in Australia. The listing of the Koala as 'vulnerable' under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act in 2012 changed nothing and did not cover Koalas in Victoria nor in South Australia. The Australian Koala Foundation says koalas are now "functionally extinct."
The Koala is now listed on the IUCN "Red List of Threatened Species" as Vulnerable (Decreasing).
Reference photo for this artwork is from pixabay.com.
Information about the koala can be found on the official website of Save The Koala, BBC News 2022, and the Australian Koala Foundation.
Copyright © 2023 Karen Conger All Rights Reserved.