This is an idea I have been playing around with for a while. It is a yellow-billed oxpecker (tickbird) "prototype" that I made. A red-billed version could be made as well.

My thinking is that it could add a little life to mounts, especially large mounts like buffalo, giraffe, rhino, etc..

The prototype is a little rough up close but I think it is convicing at a distance. It can be attached anywhere on a mount with two small pins.

Some who have seen it like it, and some see it as a distraction more than a complement.

Is there any interest in something like this as a trophy room accesory for mounts?
Any thoughts?

I appreciate all comments.

I think it would be a great as an extra to a mount might juts need to work on your paint work on it otherwise I give it the



Sorry just realized now that's a photo of the red billed oxpecker.

But I would love to have one or two of those for my mounts.

Neato! I like it. You'll need to add some freeze dried ticks for extra effect.

BTW- Tha buff mount is freaky alive looking. Good job!

I like it, but it is crude looking, especially as compared with that magnificent buff mount. You need to make the bird more detailed and lifelike, IMO.

Looks good to me.

I can't comment on the bird as I've never seen one but what a great buff mount.
One of the best I've seen.

It's common in Africa to see the real thing mounted on buff mounts and other heads, just as you've displayed here. I tried to obtained one for my buff mount but wasn't able to export the real thing from Zim. Neither Zim nor US officials would allow it.

That is a really great buffalo mount! Absolutely life-like.

Before I "refine" it I was just curious how people felt about the idea of it.

When it is viewed from a distance, especially if one has high ceilings, most of the detail of the bird is lost. However, I agree that it is crude up close and it should be more realistic. I try and put as much detail as possible in my mounts, so I feel the finished product of this bird should meet that standard as well.

Thanks everyone for the comments.

A little more feather detail, and I'd buy them for my buffalo mounts! Like TWL I tried to export/import a couple of the birds for my Buff mount, but was denied the privilage!

Another is the cattle egrets that are always around Buffalo would be a good addtion as well. We have the same species of egret in Texas, but they are protected by the USWS as shore birds.

Well done faux modles of these two birds wuold be a great addtion to any trophy room that has African trophies!

On any piece of artwork (which IMO quality taxidermy qualifies as) the details are only distracting if they are bad.

That's a fabulous buffalo mount, you have captured the live animal very effectively.

The oxpecker idea could really be cool but because they are such an obvious detail they really need to be as close to perfect as possible. It's ironic but folks will ignore the fabulous buffalo mount and remember a cartoonish oxpecker. That won't be good for your business.

Good idea, but proceed with caution.

Grafton, Get that bird finished out and you can add one to my buff mount next year. Looks good and I agree it makes a nice addition. I too, with I could bring back a real one or two, but it appears that you can't.

quote:

Originally posted by DC Roxby:
That is a really great buffalo mount! Absolutely life-like.

X2

Now, that is kinda neat!

good idea - its the little things like this that turns a plain mount into a lifelike interesting one

Very nice

I'll be the devil's advocate here and say that I think that cape mount is so outstanding that you're just taking away from it by adding the bird... it does seem distracting to me. Maybe an oxpecker on it's back would look better in my mind, but that's just my 2 pence. A great mount!

You have any others we can look at?

quote:

you're just taking away from it by adding the bird... it does seem distracting to me.

That is exactly what my wife said! she usually is right!

I just stuck the bird on for the photo. I will continue to mess around with this and see what I can come up with. Thanks to everyones comments regarding the buffalo mount, makes a guy feel good.

I have posted some photos on the taxidermy forum over the years and will post more in the future. There are some pics on my website as well.

The most hated bird in africa the Grey Loerie or Kwe voel. there should be a battery operated one in every trophy room when you enter he says
kweeeeeeee kweeeeee it wil remind us of all the animals that ran away because of them

Painted a little more feather detail. The next one I cast from the mold I will try and carve in a bit more detail. Once I get it how I want it, I will most likely make a new mold. Also here is a distance shot to give you an idea of what I was saying about it being more believable at a distance. I agree it was a little distracting being on the face before. Around the ears is prime real estate for an oxpecker though!





Speaking of bird calls, I always thought it would be cool to have a very soft background noise going in a trophy room with a push of a button. My first choice for a natural sound would be the cooing of African doves, maybe an Egyptian goose calling or some guineas cackling as they do before they fly into roost.

With the addition of the feather painting, that bird is really looking good. If you can get more three dimensional detail in the mould, it will be perfect, IMO.

Are you planning to sell them as separate items?

quote:

Are you planning to sell them as separate items?

Possibly, yes. My original thought was to just offer these to my clients as an option for their mounts. However the reason for posting here was to see if there is any interest/market for something like this. Why go to the trouble if nobody would ever want one?

I would really like to make a couple of different poses of birds and make some red-billed oxpeckers as well. They have quite a different shape to their head and bill. of course the major obstacle is time, and the fact that I am not a bird carver/sculpter! Getting a product to match the idea is the challenge.

I believe there could be enough interest in this to make it worth doing. Anybody have a factory in China? Oh yeah, and if you see someone selling these at the next convention and it is not me- they stole my idea

Grafton,

How about a real mourning dove? I think they have a similar body and you could paint over the feathers and feet to make the dove look like a oxpecker. They have different beaks and I would assume you could use an "oxpecker" wood beak and glass eyes on the dove. Just a thought...

I had thought of that too. Yes, you could do that. The body of a dove is more similar to the red-billed oxpecker. I think the dove could be turned into an oxpecker fairly convincingly. However, I could not legally sell it. It would also cost alot more to do.

I think it is a cool idea. Since the oxpeckers helped me find my buffalo I sorta like them.

I once know a guy who made his living carving birds. Before he painted them, he took a wood burning tool and burned the feather lines into the wood. That technique gave the carving a lot more texture and detail.

The original bird was a foam body covered with epoxy modeling compound. I made a simple mold from this and poured a two part liquid plastic to make the casting. I may attempt a wood carving and them make a mold from that. I have seen the wood burning tool used on decoys and such and it does look good. Sculpting suits me a little better because you can add and take away.

The next casting will get some more detail carved into it with a dremel tool etc..