Not so long ago we were learning about small rodents like mice, rats, hamsters and others. Even though when we say "rodent", generally we've got something small in mind, some representatives of the family are really, really big! Today we'll get to know the capybara, beaver, porcupine, nutria, groundhog, and muskrat—they're all rodents, so we can use the knowledge we already have to enhance our animal base by six new, interesting species!
Disclaimer
Since this tutorial is a continuation of the previous one of the series, you should go there for information about the general features of rodents. Today we'll only talk about the features of particular species.
For drawing the heads of big rodents we're going to use the template below—a big ball for the "braincase", a smaller one for the upper jaw, and a flattened one for the lower jaw. This structure can be easily modified in perspective as described in this tutorial.
1. Capybara
The capybara is the largest rodent, quite similar to its relative, the guinea pig. It's a social animal living in groups, so it makes a nice pet—as long as you can handle it! Capybaras, though round and heavy, are excellent runners and swimmers. They have long legs with hoof-like feet, and coarse, light brown fur. What's characteristic for the capybara?
- Stocky snout
- Seemingly narrow, elongated eyes
- Small, guinea-pig like ears
- No tail
- Four slightly webbed toes on the front feet
- Three slightly webbed toes on the hind feet
Head
The capybara's head is almost rectangular in look, with the front of the snout flattened. Male capybaras have a scent gland on the nose bridge, looking like a flat, black stone. The front of the snout may look shaved, being darker than the rest of the body.
Eyes
The capybara has unique eyes among the animals we're learning about today. While the rest of them have a bigger version of "black beads" as described in the previous tutorial of the series, the eyes of the capybara have an elegant look because of special shape of their eyelids' borders.
Nose
Most big rodents don't have a typical mouse nose, and this applies to the capybara, too.
Feet
The fingers of capybaras aren't as long (proportionally) as those of rats, and they also have big, blunt, hoof-like claws. They're connected with a web.
Colors
The capybara is rather plain in color, light brown, with dark gray sometimes showing on the snout, legs, and ears. Pinkish skin can be noticed on the inner side of the legs.
2. Beaver
Beavers are the second largest after capybaras. They're semi-aquatic animals with a very stocky body and a characteristic flat tail. On land you'll mainly see them sitting like a squirrel, or running with their belly close to the ground. What makes a beaver look?
- Stocky, slightly tapered snout with prominent lips
- Small eyes
- Small ears
- Rounded back
- Flat, scaly tail
- Five toes on the front feet
- Five webbed toes on the hind feet
Head
The snout should look very short in comparison to the rest of the head. Prominent lips are very important for a "beaver look".
Nose
The beaver has a big, dog-like nose placed high on the snout.
Feet
The fingers of the beaver's front feet are very agile, with long claws. On the hind feet they're specialized for swimming, converted to flippers by being webbed on the whole lengths (compare them to the capybara's feet to see the difference).
Colors
Beavers have dark chocolate fur with occasional blondish patches and a lighter underside.
3. Porcupine
The third largest rodent is also the most interesting one, the least "rodenty" in look. The porcupine has a rather slender body, but its silhouette is concealed by a bush of long, banded quills. What do you need to include in your porcupine drawing?
African Crested Porcupine (Old World Porcupine)
- Rounded snout
- Medium-sized, rounded ears
- Long, hair-like spikes on the head
- Sharp hair on whole body
- A bush of quills on the back, lying almost flat when the animal is relaxed
- Short, spiky tail
- Four toes on the front feet
- Five toes on the hind feet
North American Porcupine (New World Porcupine)
The North American porcupine isn't very closely related to the African one, but they're still very similar:
Head
The porcupine's body is so characteristic that you can't go wrong here—if you're good at drawing hamsters or rats, their heads will work properly for the porcupine head.
Nose
There's an important difference between these species:
African Crested Porcupine
This kind of porcupine has rabbit-like nose, elongated, with holes placed along a neat line.
North American Porcupine
This kind of porcupine has big, round nostrils, and the nose is almost heart-shaped.
Colors
Both porcupines are very dark in color, with banded or plain, light quills.
Feet
The porcupine is a very hairy (or should I say, spiky?) animal, so the feet look more paw-like than those of other rodents. Claws are long and curved, making the whole foot look similar to a bear's.
4. Nutria
The nutria is another of the semi-aquatic rodents on our list. They look very much like huge rats, including long, scaly tails. What's the most important for your drawn nutria?
- Rounded snout
- Small ears
- Rounded back
- Rat-like tail, scaly and hairy
- Orange or red incisors visible even when the mouth is closed
- A thick bunch of white whiskers
- Five toes on the front feet
- Five webbed toes on the hind feet
Head
A nutria is just a huge rat, right? Hence, we can use the rat head without any remorse. Remember about prominent incisors!
Nose
The nutria has a similar heart-shaped nose as the North American porcupine:
5. Groundhog
Groundhogs, or woodchucks, are popular animals of North America. They're close relatives of squirrels, and they can climb a tree when necessary. What do you need to include in your drawing to picture a groundhog?
- Short, tapered snout
- Small ears
- Long body
- Short, bushy tail
- Four toes on the front feet
- Five toes on the hind feet
Head
Since groundhogs are technically squirrels, we need to make the snout more tapered than with other rodents on our list today.
Nose
The nose of the groundhog can be closed like the rabbit's (notice the line of bending in the center).
Colors
The fur of groundhogs is a mix of reddish and black hair, with bright guard hairs.
6. Muskrat
Muskrats are the smallest rodents on our list today, and another swimming one. They're very similar to nutrias, except they're more hamster than rat in look. What do you need to draw to make a muskrat?
- Short, rounded snout
- Small ears
- Rounded back
- Scaly, vertically flattened tail
- Five toes on the front feet
- Five slightly webbed toes on the hind feet
Head
The solution for the muskrat head is a rat's head with a very short snout.
Nose
The muskrat is the only rodent on our list that actually has a typical rodent nose. Check the previous tutorial for more info.
Colors
Muskrats are dark in color, brown with black patches and a brighter mouth.
7. Practice Exercise—Draw an Illustration
Now we can use all this theory in practice. This is going to be shortened step; for more detailed explanation see the same section in the first part of this tutorial.
Step 1
Start with a rough sketch of your idea. My concept was a beaver sitting on the riverbank, observing a nutria that just swam here.
Step 2
Sculpt the bodies out of this mess, trying to adjust the body template to them.
Step 3
Use the previous lines as a base for a cleaner picture.
Step 4
Clean up the line art, paying more attention to the thickness of the lines.
The End
You can add another big family of animals to your database! Even though rodents aren't the most popular creatures to draw, keep in mind that you can use their features to create your own original beasts. As always, make sure you didn't miss any of my other animal tutorials—you can find them all on my profile.
If there's something about drawing animals (or drawing at all) you find problematic, don't hesitate to let me know in the comments—I'll be glad to help, and maybe you'll even give me an idea for another tutorial!
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