Independent project
Bateleur Conservation
For our upcoming trip to South Africa, we wanted to create an artwork to share as a gift with people and bird enthusiasts we meet along our journey. We chose to feature one of South Africa’s critically endangered birds, the Bateleur.
We hope that by turning this artwork into a sticker, we can share something people can enjoy, keep as a memento, and use to invite others to learn more about the Bateleur and the conservation work for birds of prey in South Africa.
Disclaimer: No AI tools were used in the creation of this artwork.
Disclaimer: No AI tools were used in the creation of the stickers.
Bateluer
Terathopius ecaudatus
ingqungqulu (isiZulu)
Status
Endangered (EN)
Population
Fewer than 1,000 mature Bateleurs remain in South Africa, and their population continues to decline.
TEXT
To carry the playing card theme through the design, we used the IUCN Red List’s Endangered (EN) symbol as the card’s suit, representing the Bateleur’s conservation status. Its bright red color makes the conservation message one of the most prominent elements of the sticker.
The bird’s common name, Bateleur, and its isiZulu name, iNgqungqulu, are arranged in a style inspired by the name placement on a traditional playing card, connecting the design to both the card concept and the bird’s local identity.
STYLE
As we continue to explore the retro pixel art style, we also wanted to reflect the influence of traditional Ndebele art from South Africa. Its use of geometric patterns, bold straight lines, and sharp angles informed the depiction of the Bateleur’s long wings as clean, precise triangles.
This influence also carries into the background pattern, which draws inspiration from the repetition of straight lines and angled geometric motifs arranged between vertical parallel lines.
BIRD
The artwork features two adult Bateleurs, a male and a female. Placing them back-to-back, with the male looking to the side and the female facing the viewer, represents their partnership and the close bond they share. Bateleurs are monogamous and can form long-term pair bonds that last across multiple breeding seasons. The pair works together to raise a single chick from one egg each breeding season.
The arrangement of the two Bateleurs creates a composition resembling a playing card, an idea that inspired the sticker’s overall size and layout of the type included in the logo.
COLOR
The color palette is inspired by the Bateleur’s natural plumage. Bateleurs are sexually dimorphic, meaning adult males and females have noticeably different plumage, especially on their wings. These differences informed the colors used to distinguish the two birds in the artwork.
The bright red color draws attention to the IUCN symbol and the birds’ faces, highlighting both the conservation message and the Bateleur’s distinctive features.
The background pattern is rendered in gold to create a halo around the birds, helping them stand out against the background.
SUPPORT BIRDS OF PREY CONSERVATION
Learn more and support the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Birds of Prey conservation efforts across South Africa.
REFERENCES
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). (2020). Terathopius ecaudatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22695289/174413323
BirdLife International. (n.d.). Bateleur (Terathopius ecaudatus). BirdLife International DataZone. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/bateleur-terathopius-ecaudatus
Tate, G. (2025). Bateleur (Terathopius ecaudatus). In The 2025 Red Data Book of Birds of South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini. BirdLife South Africa. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://www.birdlife.org.za/red-data-book/red-list/bateleur/