Looking for reference photos of a behavior

[mozartofsilence]

Hello! I am a scientific illustration student, and I am doing a project where I am depicting an extinct animal. I was wondering if anyone has some photos of their chickens using their leg to scratch their heads or necks? Its been surprisingly difficult to find!
I will not be using the photos for anything but references to draw from and build a model of my nanuqsaurus.

Thank you for any help!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I've seen the behavior frequently but even though I do carry my camera a lot, that is one thing I haven't caught on film.

 

[User395221]

It'd be hard to get a photo of that because they are moving and that turns it into a blurry photo.

You might be better looking at videos and when you see someone doing it, pause and make your sketch from the still of the video?

 

[mozartofsilence]

Thats a great idea! I've found a couple - however when you search for 'chicken scratching' it brings up a lot of foraging chickens. I'll keep digging through though.

 

[User395221]

Thats a great idea! I've found a couple - however when you search for 'chicken scratching' it brings up a lot of foraging chickens. I'll keep digging through though.

Yes, it's not really "a thing" that you'd expect people to tag. Does it have to be a chicken doing it? My cocky (galah) does it, you might find it more easily in a parrot video, although if you want it side-on, you might not get it there, either.

 

[mozartofsilence]

Yes, it's not really "a thing" that you'd expect people to tag. Does it have to be a chicken doing it? My cocky (galah) does it, you might find it more easily in a parrot video, although if you want it side-on, you might not get it there, either.

I'm illustrating Nanuqsaurus which is a type of tyrannosaur, and chickens are usually a great reference for the legs. I find the articulation of the toes on parrots and other perching birds to be difficult to translate to what I need. It was a bit of a long shot but I figured if I were to find them they would be here!

 

[User395221]

and other perching birds to be difficult to translate to what I need.

aah, gotcha. I do think my chicken's feet are way more overtly "dinosaur" than my other birds.

Quote:
Don't give up yet, just because I am incapable of taking photo of anything moving doesn't mean we don't have somebody with a better camera and an obliging "stunt chook"

 

[stoneunhenged]

Not head scratching, but definitely dinosaur-like.

 

[mozartofsilence]

Thanks! that is actually VERY helpful for my leg sketches.

In case anyone was interested it what this was going to become

We are learning to make a maquette to draw from,
he isn't quite finished and I'm going to heat him up to fiddle with the post a little bit more and add the chicken leg look to his limbs

 

[User395221]

"Adorable" isn't the right word, is it?

That's what I think of him/her, anyway. The expression on the head gives him life. How big were they in real life? Cute little things, or T-Rex, get outta-my-way size?