[Federal Register: September 14, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 178)]
[Notices]
[Page 52576-52577]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr14se07-56]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
2007 Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (Federal Duck
Stamp) Contest
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announce the
[[Page 52577]]
dates and location of the 2007 Federal Duck Stamp contest, and the
species eligible to be subjects for this year's designs. We invite the
public to enter and to attend. The 2007 contest will select the image
that will grace the 75th Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and
Conservation Stamp.
DATES: The public may first view the 2007 Federal Duck Stamp Contest
entries on Tuesday, September 25, 2007 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
1. Judging will be held on Friday, October 12, 2007 beginning at 1
p.m. and on Saturday, October 13, 2007 beginning at 9 a.m., at the
Sanibel, FL location.
ADDRESSES: Requests for complete copies of the contest rules,
reproduction rights agreement, and display and participation agreement
by calling 1-703-358-2000, or by writing to: Federal Duck Stamp
Contest, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior,
4401 North Fairfax Drive, Mail Stop MBSP-4070, Arlington, VA 22203-
1622. You may also download the information from the Federal Duck Stamp
Web site at http://duckstamps.fws.gov.
The contest will be held in Sanibel, Florida at the Big Arts
Center, 900 Dunlop Road, Sanibel, FL 33957. Phone (239)395-0900.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laurie Shaffer, Federal Duck Stamp
Office, (703) 358-2002, or by e-mail Laurie_Shaffer@fws.gov or fax at
(703) 358-2009.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On March 16, 1934, Congress passed and President Franklin Roosevelt
signed the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act. Popularly known as the
Duck Stamp Act, it required all waterfowl hunters 16 years or older to
buy a stamp annually. The revenue generated was originally earmarked
for the Department of Agriculture, but 5 years later was transferred to
the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
to buy or lease waterfowl sanctuaries. Regulations governing the
contest appear at 50 CFR part 91.
In the years since its enactment, the Federal Duck Stamp Program
has become one of the most popular and successful conservation programs
ever initiated. Today, some 1.8 million stamps are sold each year, and
as of 2005, Federal Duck Stamps have generated more than $700 million
for the preservation of more than 5.2 million acres of waterfowl
habitat in the United States. Numerous other birds, mammals, fish,
reptiles, and amphibians have similarly prospered because of habitat
protection made possible by the program. An estimated one-third of the
Nation's endangered and threatened species find food or shelter in
refuges preserved by Duck Stamp funds. Moreover, the protected wetlands
help dissipate storms, purify water supplies, store flood water, and
nourish fish hatchlings important for sport and commercial fishermen.
The Contest
The first Federal Duck Stamp was designed at President Franklin
Roosevelt's request by Jay N. ``Ding'' Darling, a nationally known
political cartoonist for the Des Moines Register and a noted hunter and
wildlife conservationist. In subsequent years, noted wildlife artists
were asked to submit designs. The first contest was opened in 1949 to
any U.S. artist who wished to enter, and 65 artists submitted a total
of 88 design entries in the only art competition of its kind sponsored
by the U.S. Government. To select each year's design, a panel of noted
art, waterfowl, and philatelic authorities are appointed by the
Secretary of the Interior. Winners receive no compensation for the
work, except a pane of their stamps, but winners may sell prints of
their designs, which are sought by hunters, conservationists, and art
collectors.
The public may view the 2007 Federal Duck Stamp entries on Tuesday,
September 25, 2007 and through the days of judging. This year's judging
will be held on Friday, October 12 and Saturday, October 13, 2007.
Eligible Species
The following species are eligible for the 2007 contest: Mallard,
American Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail, Canvasback and Harlequin
Duck. Entries featuring a species other than the above listed species
will be disqualified.
Dated: September 5, 2007.
H. Dale Hall,
Director.
[FR Doc. E7-18139 Filed 9-13-07; 8:45 am]
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