This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The 2017-18 federal duck stamp, which features Canada geese, is now on sale.
Money from the stamp, known as the Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, is important to conservation.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, sales of the stamp since it was started in 1934 have raised more than $950 million to conserve nearly 6 million acres of wetlands habitat on national wildlife refuges around the nation.
It was painted by five-time duck stamp contest artist James Hartman of Chaska, Minn.
"The federal duck stamp is the nation's most unique and successful conservation stamp. This program has been fueled largely by waterfowl hunters, who are required to buy a duck stamp each year and often buy more than one," said Greg Sheehan, service acting director. "Birders and other outdoors enthusiasts, artists and stamp collectors also buy duck stamps, recognizing their benefit to species and habitat conservation beyond waterfowl, as well as their artistic value."
The stamp costs $25, and 98 percent of the proceeds go to the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, which supports wetlands conservation for the national wildlife refuge system. The stamp is good for free admission to any national wildlife refuge that charges an entry fee.
This year's junior duck stamp, which also is on sale, features a pair of trumpeter swans painted by Isaac Schreiber, 12, of Duffield, Va.
To learn more about the federal and junior duck stamp program, visit http://www.fws.gov/birds/get-involved/duck-stamp.php .