What’s that bird?
See it? Dark feathers, long pale legs, and a bright red-orange beak. It’s there – on the rocks – pecking for food, it seems.
Have you found it? Do you know what it is?
Probably an oystercatcher! There are two species in North America: American Oystercatcher and Black Oystercatcher. Which you find depends mostly on which coast you’re visiting, but both can be found hunting for shellfish like oysters, clams, and mussels, in rocky intertidal zones.
My kids love finding new bird species to watch, and creating art with their new favorite is such a great cross-curricular opportunity!
In this oystercatcher at sunset art project, a glowing sunset sky is created with bleeding tissue paper, and the oystercatcher is created with a collage of paper on top. Add details on the rocks to show what the bird is hunting for. Tide pools and rocky shores can be colorful places if you look in the cracks!
We love tide pools so much we created an entire bundle of art projects celebrating the rocky ecosystem that houses plants and animals galore. Even better, it’s FREE! Grab the Tide Pools bundle at the link at the end of the post and see what Glitter Bomb is all about.
Now grab your supplies and let’s go birding – art style!
What you'll need:
- 1 12×18 piece of sulphite paper
- 2 pieces of 9×12 sulphite paper in black and white
- 1 piece of 9×12 sulphite paper in brown and red
- Bleeding tissue paper (4-5 colors) **You can also use watercolors.**
- Cup of water
- A white oil pastel or white paint marker
- A marker, crayon, or pencil
- Scissors
- Glue
Oystercatcher at Sunset Art Project Instructions
Cut or tear your chosen bleeding tissue paper colors into small squares. Wet the white paper with a paintbrush and water, then lay the squares on the paper. Overlapping is great for creating interesting colors and patterns.
Cover about the top 2/3 of the paper with your sunset colors. Remove the tissue paper. Then let it dry.
Next, cut out body pieces for your oystercatcher, including
- large teardrop shape in brown and in white for the body
- 4 brown skinny rectangles for the legs
- long, narrow red triangle for the beak.
Rip black paper and layer the rock shapes on the bottom third of the colorful background paper (once it’s dry).
Keep ripping and adding paper to layer rocks and add texture. Don’t be afraid to have pieces of black paper sticking up or poking out.
Create shellfish by cutting out an oval with a folded edge. Let your bird catch one!
Last, assemble your bird parts on top of the rocks. Glue rocks and bird down.
Add details with crayons or oil pastels.
Ready to collage an adorable oystercatcher?
This art project is part of our Tide Pools bundle, which we are giving you for FREE! We can’t wait for you to discover what our bundles are all about. Explore over 10 full art projects and several cross-curricular extension activities. (Think writing, science, and geography!)
Click the banner below to download the FREE bundle.
We would love it if you’d share your art project results!
Don’t forget to tag us at @soulsparklettes on social media if you do this shoreline art project with your kids or students – we love to see what you create!
Join one of our Memberships!
This is an example of the fun we have inside the Glitterbombers Memberships. Chose the level right for your students – Glitterbombers (K-7th) or the new Glitterbombers HIGH (7th-12th). With either choice, you’ll have hundreds more art projects, videos, and resources at your fingertips for whatever you’re studying, or whatever art concept you’re ready to teach. Click here to join our waitlist and find out when we open next!
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