Magical Animal Alphabet: Onikuma

It would make a lot of sense to make O as Ouroboros, which is a serpent or a dragon that eats its own tail. It's nice and round and symbolizes introspection and cyclicality. But where would the challenge be in that?

So I went with Onikuma, a Japanese bear-like creature that walks upright into villages at night and carries off livestock.

Skill Building

At my critique, one of the panel members (who is a great illustrator herself) suggested I look into what other illustrators are doing, and learn from them.
So I found this illustrator, Chris Riddell, and decided to copy a beautiful illustration of his, just so I can see what he does and how he does it. Looking is not enough for me, I need to actually do it in order to really "see" it. So after copying that illustration (you can see the copy below), I made this one:

 I call her "Unicorn Rider". Very original.

Here's my Chris Riddel fanart:

I still have ways to go, but it's a start.

Magical Animal Alphabet: Nachtkrapp

The Nachtkrapp is a giant raven-like bird. If seen by little children, it will abduct them into its nest and devour them, ripping their limbs and then picking out their hearts. Very messy!
How nice of parents to paint such a comforting picture for their children as they put them to sleep...

I don't think my Nachtkrapp is as merciless. He's more the kind that simply put children in his bag and takes them away.

Magical Animal Alphabet: Meretseger

The Egyptian goddess Meretseger is both dangerous and merciful. Her name means "she who loves silence". She defended the Valley of the Kings by spitting venom at anyone who tried to vandalize or rob the royal tombs.

Magical Animal Alphabet: Liger

Of course! Because ligers are bred for the skills in magic!

And it's not like actual ligers are any less magical. Just look at this one:

Magical Animal Alphabet: Kelpie

I mostly just wanted to do Kelpie for K because I like the way the word sounds. But it's a pretty cute version of a memaid, which I don't particularly like. Merhorses are much better.

Magical Animal Alphabet: Jaculus

Jaculus is a small serpent or dragon, that is also known somtimes as javelin snake.
In Greek mythology, it is said to spring out at its victims, like a javelin, from its hiding places in trees. This is similar to an actual little snake in Madagascar, the fandrefiala.

Jaculus is also the genus of a rodent, the jerboa! So I had to do a quick watercolor sketch for it, as well.

Watercolor Rodents: Jerboa

I was working on my Jaculus for the Magical Animal Series, when I found out that Jaculus is also a genus of rodents that look very much like Kangaroo Rats. Jaculus live in deserts of Africa and the Middle East, while Kangaroo Rats live in deserts in North America. Looks like convergent evolution to me!

Magical Animal Alphabet: Ikaroa

Ikaroa, in Maori mythology, is the magical long fish that gave birth to our galaxy!

Magical Animal Alphabet: Hippogryph

Hippogryph (can also be spelled Hippogriff) is a half eagle half horse and is the symbol of Apollo, either through his connection to the Muses or as god of the sun. In some tradition, the hippogryph is a symbol of love, because its parents, the mare and griffin, are natural enemies.