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How to Draw a Crested Caracara

14 steps · Medium · about 11 min

Draw a crested caracara in 14 easy steps, about 11 minutes. Free, with a printable worksheet.

Each picture adds one red line. Draw that line, then scroll to the next picture. Rub out any dashed helper lines at the end. First up: a round head.

Step 1: A round head
Near the top left of your paper, draw a round head, a little wider than tall.
Step 2: Hooked bill
On the front of the head, draw a short bill hooking down to a sharp point. Add a mouth line.
Step 3: One big eye
Behind the bill, high on the head, draw a big round eye with a black dot and a shine.
Step 4: Flat cap, shaggy tuft
Start on the forehead. Draw a flat cap line over the eye, ending at a shaggy tuft at the back.
Tip The flat black cap and the bare orange face are the caracara's signature.
Step 5: Face patch
From the cap line, curve round in front of the eye, ending at the bottom of the bill.
Step 6: Neck and body
From the back of the head, draw a short neck and a big egg body, ending back at the chin.
Step 7: Barred bib
From the back of the neck, curve a bib line down to the chest. Add 3 bars on the bib.
Step 8: Folded wing
Behind the bib line, draw a long leaf wing along the back, its point near the end of the body.
Step 9: Tail and band
From under the wing, draw a long tail down and back, getting wider. Add a line near its end.
Step 10: Two long legs
Under the tummy, draw 2 long legs that bend back a little, each with 3 toes forward and 1 back.
Step 11: Ground and grass
Start at the left edge. Draw a ground line under the toes to the right edge. Add grass tufts.
Step 12: Yellow legs, orange face
Colour the legs yellow, the face patch orange. Leave the eye, head, chest and tail white up to the line.
Step 13: Grey bill, brown body
Colour the bill grey. Colour the body and the wing brown, going around the white chest.
Step 14: Black cap, tail end
Colour the cap and the tuft black, and colour the end of the tail past the line black.