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DOWNUNDERVOICESAustralia · New Zealand · World

Independent Australian satire

Cartoon of the Day

1 October 2026 · Original Downunder Voices cartoon

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of king penguins posing for photographers on a bird awards-night carpet while a rosella steals sugar and a brush turkey wears a bow tie

Australia’s feathered red carpet

The 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards celebrated king penguins gliding underwater, a sugar-stealing crimson rosella, a bin-foraging brush turkey and other remarkable bird moments. Australia’s feathered stars have mastered the red carpet—provided everyone remembers to act natural.

This is satire based on a reported public event. The characters and dialogue are fictional. Artwork is original to Downunder Voices.

Source: Guardian Australia — The 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards ↗

Cartoon Archive

Previous original Downunder Voices cartoons.

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a soba-noodle bowl shaking hands with a flowering cherry tree beside Deloraine’s Hanami Trail

30 September 2026

Tasmania’s noodle diplomacy blooms

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of about ten dolphins forming a fast western line beneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge while two kayakers look on

29 September 2026

The harbour’s new Western Line

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of bogong moths carrying tiny suitcases past a porch-light detour toward an alpine summer terminal

28 September 2026

The bogongs return to the night shift

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an original generic lion charging through an open final-four-minutes gate after a dockside bell rings Wharfie Time

27 September 2026

The Lions arrive right on Wharfie Time

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of South Australian wildflowers parading along an outback runway while an emu reads a once-in-a-lifetime bloom program

26 September 2026

The outback unveils its spring collection

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a conservation ranger filming a young night parrot peeking from a spinifex tunnel during daylight while holding a tiny alarm clock

25 September 2026

The night shift makes a rare daytime appearance

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of the sun blowing solar wind toward Earth while an Australian backyard weather presenter holds an inside-out umbrella

24 September 2026

The forecast is windy — very high up

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a rainforest researcher discovering two large stick insects previously filed under actual sticks

23 September 2026

Two new members of the family tree

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a Sydney commuter dressed for summer and winter as the temperature falls ten degrees within one afternoon

22 September 2026

Four seasons, one afternoon

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of Melbourne tram drivers crossing a Warsaw championship finish line in 25th place, just ahead of London

21 September 2026

Second-last, but right on schedule

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a generic big-tech dinosaur testing an Australian copyright fence while creators operate a pay-at-the-gate booth

17 September 2026

Big tech tests Australia’s copyright fence

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of scientists gathering beneath Canberra’s Shine Dome while a maintenance worker turns a concentrated brainpower dial to high

16 September 2026

Canberra concentrates its brainpower

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a record-priced Angus bull presenting a genetics start-up pitch to cattle investors under the words actual seed funding

15 September 2026

Wyatt finds some actual seed funding

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a cheerful bilby running a National Bilby Day information booth in Charleville while its Easter understudy apron hangs nearby

14 September 2026

Charleville gives the long ears their own Sunday

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an invasive cat’s-claw creeper vine receiving career advice to become a five-metre mullet at Currumbin Beach

13 September 2026

Gold Coast weeds get a sea change

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a surprised American football taking an unpredictable bounce at a packed Melbourne Cricket Ground while a cricket ball welcomes it

12 September 2026

American football meets the Melbourne bounce

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an anthropomorphic work-from-home bill sitting on a sofa and logging into a parliamentary inquiry while its vote is delayed

11 September 2026

Victoria’s work-from-home bill logs in remotely

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of two south-west Queensland stargazers surprised by a bright object and sonic boom while their cattle dog wears earmuffs

10 September 2026

South-west Queensland gets a surprise encore

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a kangaroo diner choosing a simple feed while an algorithm robot carries an overloaded stack of recommended dishes

9 September 2026

Australia orders its feed à la carte

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a homemade outback telescope viewing Saturn and its newly identified ten-sided south-polar wave

8 September 2026

Broken Hill finds Saturn’s extra corners

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of three folk musicians returning to a Geelong stage beside calendar pages from the 1980s and 2026

7 September 2026

Geelong’s longest encore finally ends

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an alpaca judging a strongman lifting 191 kilograms while a four-dollar cheese toastie is declared the real feat of strength

6 September 2026

The Show’s strongest attraction costs four dollars

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an electric car taking first place on a sales podium ahead of a petrol car after Australian EV sales set a record

5 September 2026

Australia’s new-car podium plugs in

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a huge transport aircraft rehearsing safely above Brisbane while an office worker asks whether it is the sound check

4 September 2026

Brisbane finds the Riverfire volume knob

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a tiny nabarlek rock-wallaby arriving with a suitcase while a delighted field ecologist says they have been waiting 50 years

3 September 2026

The Kimberley’s most fashionably late arrival

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an Adelaide street-circuit unveiling where a racing fan brings popcorn and a pillow after the proposed track was described as potentially boring

2 September 2026

Adelaide prepares for the fast lane — and a nap

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of two office robots surrounded by enormous piles of emails while a workplace tribunal chair orders future correspondence to be brief, accurate and human

1 September 2026

An unusually brief order for the robots

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a Gold Coast Show volunteer holding an attendance counter beyond its record mark while a racing duck asks whether the ducks were counted

31 August 2026

A record crowd — give or take a few ducks

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a Parramatta Open volunteer holding an enormous ring of antique keys outside a historic public building while a visitor asks which key opens it

30 August 2026

The key to one-day access

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a generic bulldog presenting an AFL wild card at the finals gate while a magpie stands beside a 96–93 scoreboard

29 August 2026

The final before the finals

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a young Gympie Music Muster visitor meeting a cheerful veteran covered in decades of festival wristbands and badges

28 August 2026

A first-timer, technically

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of an anthropomorphic map of Western Australia and a Productivity Commission report arguing across the WA border over a GST money sack

27 August 2026

Crossing the line, Western Australian style

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a supermarket executive examining a tiny generic collectible figure beside a large profit report

26 August 2026

Two centimetres of serious competition

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of a sleepy Sydney resident calling a low-flying training helicopter the new alarm clock

25 August 2026

Sydney's new alarm clock has excellent range

Black-and-white editorial cartoon of two visitors digging through a huge indoor dirt pile and finding a dangerous idea

24 August 2026

Careful what you dig up — it might require thinking

Editorial cartoon showing a Sydney Marathon runner surprised that the participation medal depicts Munich's Allianz Arena

23 August 2026

Sydney Marathon medal takes a wrong turn to Munich