I save a lot of animal pics on Instagram, particularly of birds. A lot of that is for my job featuring animals like this, but I also like to use the photos as references for painting practice in my sketchbook.
Many work for both, but when I saved an image of the Indian roller, I wasn’t yet convinced it was a good subject for an article.
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For a painting, yes. The warm peachy hues and mix of different blues would be a good challenge to get right.
Then I clicked through to look for other references and discovered that when this very pretty bird is at rest, its most amazing feature is hidden.
Because when it spreads its wings for flight, it’s suddenly very obvious why these birds were also once called blue jays.
Just look at all those bands of blue!
The wings almost seem to belong to a whole different bird, but that just makes them more incredible.
As their name suggests, these birds are mostly found in India, though there are pockets found along the Persian Gulf and into southeast Asia.
The population in southeast Asia is a subspecies that’s sometimes considered separate, due to its distinct purple breast.
The name ‘roller’ comes from the acrobatic mating dance the males perform to attract potential partners. They even make quick dives into pools of water to bathe.
Due to their familiarity and long history in India, the birds have a place in many local customs.
Believed to be sacred to Vishnu, they are caught and released for festivals such as Dussera and Durga Puja, though that practice has become less common over time.
They can often be seen large flocks perched on electrical wires along Indian roadsides.
