A frilled lizard on a tree trunk, frill foldedNative to northern Australia and southern New Guinea. The frill usually stays folded against the body.
A koala dozing, one arm hooked over a branchKoalas sleep up to twenty hours a day in eucalyptus trees, whose leaves are most of their diet.
A laughing kookaburra on a fence postA kingfisher native to eastern mainland Australia. Big head, long heavy bill, short body.
A leafy seadragon among seaweedA fish of Australia's southern and western coasts. Its leaf-like growths are only camouflage.
A platypus swimming, seen from aboveAn egg-laying mammal of eastern Australia with a duck's bill and a beaver's tail.
A quokka looking upA macropod about the size of a house cat, native to Australia. Round ears, round cheeks.
A red kangaroo with a joey in her pouchThe largest of all kangaroos and the largest land mammal native to Australia.
A short-beaked echidna rolled into a ballCovered in fur and spines, it lays eggs and curls into a ball when a predator comes near.
A sugar glider about to leap from a branchIts gliding membranes stretch from the forelegs to the hindlegs. Show it crouched, about to jump.
A sulphur-crested cockatoo in flightA large white cockatoo. The crest is yellow, and the underwing and tail are tinged with yellow.
A Tasmanian devil in profileA carnivorous marsupial of Tasmania. Draw the big head first, then the body behind it.
A thorny devil on desert sandA desert lizard covered in spines, colored in browns and tans, that lives mainly on ants.
A wombat at the mouth of its burrowA short-legged, muscular marsupial that digs long burrows. Its pouch faces backward.
An emu runningOnly the ostrich is a taller bird. It cannot fly and lives only in Australia.
The tail of a superb lyrebirdOne of the world's largest songbirds, known for its elaborate tail and its mimicry.
Plants 15
A banksia coneBanksias are known for their flower spikes and their woody fruiting cones.
A boab treeIts trunk swells at the base, so the tree looks like a bottle.
A branch of Wollemi pineDiscovered in 1994 in Wollemi National Park, New South Wales, and often called a living fossil.
A Cooktown orchidThe floral emblem of Queensland: sprays of up to twenty flowers, usually lilac-purple.
A ghost gum on red groundA tree with smooth bark found only in Central Australia. Leave the trunk the white of the paper.
A grass tree in flowerXanthorrhoea carries its flowers on one long spike above a bare stalk.
A macadamia nut, crackedNo other widely grown food plant but the macadamia comes from Australia.
A red and green kangaroo pawA flower found only in Western Australia, which has it as its floral emblem.
A red bottlebrushCallistemon is named bottlebrush for its flowers. Short red lines stand out all around the stem.
A river red gumA eucalypt found only in Australia, with smooth white or cream bark.
A sprig of golden wattleAustralia's floral emblem since 1988: round yellow flower heads among long green leaves.
A tree fern with a frond uncurlingThe soft tree fern is native to eastern Australia, from southeast Queensland to Tasmania.
A waratah flower headThe floral emblem of New South Wales, the only state where it grows wild.
Gum leaves and gumnutsAdult eucalyptus leaves are lance-shaped and usually hang down. The woody fruits are called gumnuts.
Sturt's desert peaSouth Australia's floral emblem since 1961: red flowers, each with a shiny black boss.
Places 15
A Melbourne tramMelbourne has the world's largest working city tram network. Its W class trams date from 1923.
A Queenslander houseA timber house raised on stumps, with a veranda and a corrugated iron roof.
The bathing boxes of BrightonAbout a hundred brightly colored beach huts in a row on a Melbourne beach.
Cradle Mountain across Dove LakeA mountain in Tasmania, often pictured from the far shore of Dove Lake. Jagged top, still water.
The domes of the Bungle Bungle RangeBeehive-shaped sandstone towers banded in orange and dark gray, in Purnululu National Park.
The Great Barrier Reef from the airThe world's largest coral reef system: over 2,900 reefs and 900 islands off Queensland.
Lake Hillier, the pink lakeA pink lake on Middle Island, off Western Australia. Draw it from the air, beside the blue sea.
The lighthouse at Cape ByronBuilt in 1901 at the easternmost point of mainland Australia: a round tower with a balcony.
The PinnaclesLimestone pillars in Nambung National Park, Western Australia. Scatter them, tall and short.
The Sydney Harbour Bridge with a ferry belowA steel arch bridge opened in 1932 and nicknamed the Coathanger for its shape.
The Sydney Opera House from across the waterIts roofs are large precast concrete shells, each a section of one sphere, on Bennelong Point.
The Three SistersA sandstone rock formation in the Blue Mountains, near Katoomba, above the Jamison Valley.
The Twelve ApostlesLimestone stacks off the coast of Victoria, by the Great Ocean Road. There may never have been twelve.
Uluru at sunset, from far offA sandstone monolith, sacred to the Aboriginal people of the area, that glows red at dawn and sunset.
Wave RockA granite cliff shaped like a breaking wave, about 15 m high and 110 m long, near Hyden.
Food and everyday life 15
A billy on a campfireA billycan is a light metal pot, like a small bucket, used to boil water for tea over a fire.
A kangaroo warning signAustralian warning signs are yellow diamonds, and one of them shows a kangaroo.
A lamingtonSponge cake dipped in chocolate sauce, then rolled in dried coconut.
A meat pie with sauceA takeout snack that has been called Australia's national dish. Add a squiggle of tomato sauce.
A Merino ramMerino sheep have very fine, soft wool. The rams' long spiral horns grow close to the head.
A pavlova with a slice cutA round of baked meringue, crisp outside and soft inside, topped with fruit and cream.
A piece of opalOpal is Australia's national gemstone. Precious opal shows a play of color; common opal does not.
A road train on an outback highwayA truck that pulls a string of trailers, used across remote Australia.
A surf lifesaver's capLifesavers on patrol wear cloth caps in red and yellow. Tie the strings under the chin.
A tray of Anzac biscuitsA sweet biscuit (a cookie) of rolled oats, flour, sugar, butter and golden syrup.
An Australian cattle dogA breed made in Australia to drive cattle long distances, known as the blue or red heeler.
Damper baking in campfire coalsAustralian campfire bread: the dough is kneaded, then baked in the coals.
The goal posts of Australian footballFour posts in a row. A kick between the middle pair is a goal; between a middle and an outer post, a behind.
One triangle of fairy bread, close upWhite bread, butter and sprinkles (hundreds and thousands), cut into triangles for children's parties.
The stars of the Australian flagA seven-pointed star and the Southern Cross: four seven-pointed stars and one small five-pointed one.
How it works
Sixty Australia drawing ideas, each real and named: a mammal that lays eggs, a tree shaped like a bottle, a cliff shaped like a wave, a sponge cake rolled in coconut.
Read the full guide
Australian drawing ideas, group by group
Animals goes from the red kangaroo to the leafy seadragon. Plants holds the floral emblems: golden wattle for the country, then a waratah, a kangaroo paw, Sturt's desert pea and the Cooktown orchid for four of the states. Places and Food and everyday life finish the page.
What is left out
Nothing here copies Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander art, and no story or sacred design that belongs to a community is offered as a subject. Uluru is on the list as a landscape, seen from far off at sunset.
Gum leaves hang down. Draw them as long curved blades falling from one stalk.
A kangaroo is a pear on two long feet. Draw the tail thick where it joins the body.
Questions and answers
What are some easy Australian things to draw?
A koala dozing in a tree, a wombat at its burrow, a sprig of golden wattle, a boab tree, Wave Rock, a lamington and a kangaroo warning sign. More filters has an Easy level with the others.
What is Australia's national flower?
The golden wattle, Acacia pycnantha, Australia's official floral emblem since 1988. States have their own: the waratah for New South Wales, the kangaroo paw for Western Australia, the Cooktown orchid for Queensland.
Which Australian animals lay eggs?
The platypus and the echidna, and both are mammals. Both are on the list: a platypus swimming, seen from above, and a short-beaked echidna rolled into a ball.
What is the national gemstone of Australia?
Opal. Precious opal shows a play of color and common opal does not. A piece of opal is in the Food and everyday life group, at the Hard level.