Elfyland Studios

Home
United Kingdom
Cambridge
Elfyland Studios

Elfy Chiang is a scientific illustrator with a background in Biological Sciences.

13/02/2026

Had the great opportunity to work on this ink drawing and an animation for Edoardo Gianni in Philipp Holliger’s group at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) for their latest discovery - a small self-replicating RNA that may help explain the origins of life.

It's been a while since I last worked in ink, and I’ve always wanted to illustrate something as geeky as an RNA structure - this was the perfect chance to do so. Since the research looks at how life first began, we chose a simple, classic art style to reflect the ancient and mysterious world before life existed on Earth.

Congrats to Edoardo and team on their publication today in the journal Science Magazine with such a significant discovery on something scientists in the same field had been working on for over 30 yrs.

The animation outlining the study’s key findings can be found on the LMB press release: https://lnkd.in/epVxMgZH

11/02/2026

Day9 of the challenge - Silver-eared Mesia.

These colourful little birds live across Southeast Asia and the Himalayas. They are team players, several adults work together to build a single nest.
 Sadly, recordings of their call are restricted due to bird trapping, so I couldn’t pair this one with audio of their birdsong 🥲

And that’s a wrap on this drawing challenge - really enjoyed taking this chance experimenting with materials and techniques as well as learning about each bird along the way 💛

29/01/2026

Day8 of the challenge - Common redpoll.

They can survive −65°C temperatures, eat nearly half their body weight each day, and even have a special pouch for storing snacks!  Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.
 Audio recording by Ulf Elman, XC982778. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/982778.

28/01/2026

Day7 of the challenge - Mountain Bluebird.

Known to be the inspiration of the Twitter logo(RIP), these birds actually have no blue pigment. The colour comes from a microscopic structure in their feathers that only reflect blue light.   Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.
 Audio recording by Richard E. Webster, XC351732. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/351732.

25/01/2026

Day6 of the challenge - Indian paradise flycatcher.

Adult male birds have long tail feathers up to twice the length of their bodies. They would go as far as 10 meters away from their nests to poo, preventing scents from attracting predators. Clever birds!  Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.

Trying to catch up with this drawing challenge after a holiday. But feels great to be back playing with my pencils again.  Audio recording by Darshan Dudhane, XC1017257. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/1017257.

08/01/2026

Day5 of the challenge - Northern emerald toucanet.

Lives in Central America. Some scientists discovered that fruit seeds are more likely to germinate after being p**ped out by these birds.

Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.   Audio recording by Richard E. Webster, XC335065. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/335065.

06/01/2026

Day4 of the challenge - Golden-headed manakin.

Lives in the forests of Central and South America. They have pink feet and can p**p in shades of purple or red, depending on the berries consumed.   I like how their white eyes make them look like they’re always startled.

Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.   Audio recording by Mauricio Álvarez-Rebolledo (Colección de Sonidos Ambientales - Instituto Humboldt), XC525498. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/525498.

05/01/2026

Day3 of the challenge - Razorbill.

Lives on coastal cliffs across North Atlantic. They lay pointy eggs to prevent them falling off the cliffs.

Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.   Audio recording by Sven Normant, XC1019245. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/1019245.

04/01/2026

Day2 of the challenge - Many-coloured rush tyrant.

Lives in South America. I also heard they produce dark green and brown droppings. Love how they are colourful and chubby.

Turn up your volume to hear what they sound like.   Recording by Cristian Pinto Fernandez, XC925410. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/925410.

03/01/2026

Day1 of the challenge - Bronzewing pigeon.

Native to Australia and according to my search results, their call is an advertising ‘whooo’.
And yes, I looked up what their droppings look like.

I’m a little late to the party for this January drawing challenge but had fun experimenting with drawing loose on this one.

Thanks to for hosting. challenge

Address

Cambridge

Website

http://www.elfylandstudios.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Elfyland Studios posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.