U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service -- Press Releases

Student Wildlife Art Contest Entries for the Junior Duck Stamp Competition Due March 15th
Contest is Celebrating 15 years of Conservation through the Arts

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, there is still time for students to enter the 2007 Junior Duck Stamp competition. Entries must be postmarked by midnight March 15, 2007.

The Georgia Junior Duck Stamp competition will recognize Georgia’s top student waterfowl artists. Public, private, and home-schooled students, as well as art studio students from kindergarten through high school, are invited to compete for recognition, prizes, and scholarships in an activity that promotes the conservation of America’s wetlands and waterfowl habitat.

Each year, hundreds of Georgia students compete to win top honors. Teachers may use an integrated science and art curriculum provided by the Service. Each participating student must research and then artistically depict a duck, goose or other waterfowl species native to North America on paper. All artwork submitted must be an original 9” x 12” horizontal image of North American ducks, geese, or swans. In 2006, with the encouragement from teachers and parents, more than 750 Georgia students participated in the four grade categories: K-3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12. All participants receive a certificate of appreciation.

Entries with official forms should be mailed to Georgia Junior Duck Stamp Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1875 Century Boulevard, Suite 240, Atlanta, Georgia, 30345, and must be postmarked by midnight, March 15, 2007, to be eligible. Additional contest information and an official entry form can be obtained by calling Resee Collins, Georgia Coordinator, at (404) 679-7051.

A total of 100 winners and one Best of Show will be selected from the four different age groups. The contest judging will take place at the Atlanta U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Regional Office in Atlanta next month. First, second, and third place honors will awarded, as well as honorable mentions. The winning Georgia Best of Show will compete nationally in Washington D.C. The national First Place entry will become the Federal Junior Duck Stamp, which is sold through the U.S Postal Service for $5 per stamp. Proceeds from the sale of Junior Duck Stamps support conservation education and provide awards and scholarships for the students, teachers and schools participating in the program.

The Georgia 2007 winning artwork will tour the state on public exhibit at venues ranging from Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Sandy Creek Nature Center in Athens, Elachee Nature Center in Gainesville, Oatland Island Education Center in Savannah, and the Georgia Wildlife Federation Fisharama in Atlanta.

Georgia’s Junior Duck Stamp competition is part of the Federal Junior Duck Stamp competition, authorized by Congress in 1994. The purpose of the Junior Duck Stamp contest is to promote conservation of wetlands and waterfowl habitat through arts education. The Junior Duck Stamp is modeled after the Federal Duck Stamp, which has been sold since 1934 to raise money to protect wetlands and waterfowl habitat. For more information about the Junior Duck Stamp Program, visit the website at http://www.fws.gov/duckstamps/junior/junior.htm.

For further information about the Junior Duck Stamp contest or the Fish and Wildlife Service, please contact Resee Collins at (404) 679-7051, or e-mail Resee_Collins@fws.gov.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 96-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 547 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices, and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American Tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to State fish and wildlife agencies.

For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, visit our home page at http://www.fws.gov/southeast or http://www.fws.gov/.

NOTE: You can view our releases or subscribe to receive them -- via e-mail -- at the Service's Southeast Regional home page at http://www.fws.gov/southeast/news. Our national home page is at: http://news.fws.gov/newsreleases/. Atlanta, GA 30345, Phone: 404/679-7289 Fax: 404/679-7286

2007 News Releases