Forward by Jim Willliams Wayzata, Minnesota Begin forwarded message:
From: "Paul J. Baicich" <[email protected]> Date: June 30, 2005 7:02:49 PM CDT To: <[email protected]> Subject: 2005-2006 Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp now on sale Dear Birding and Conservation Friends, I returned this afternoon from the "First Day of Sale Ceremony" for the new Federal Duck Stamp, the stamp that is now available at post offices, National Wildlife Refuges, some national retail chain stores, and various sporting-goods stores nationwide. It was a highly impressive event, well attended, and inspirational. (For you dedicated birders out there, it was really nice to see Kenn Kaufman present, since he served as one of the stamp's art-competition judges this past year.) The Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, which is the Duck Stamp's official name, has been a stunning success story over its 71-year history. Started in a major wetland-and-waterfowl crisis in the mid-1930s, the stamp has been used as a very effective funding mechanism for our refuge system. It has accrued over $700 million and has been used to secure over 5.2 million acres of valuable wetland habitat. About $25 million a year is currently collected through yearly stamp sales. Proceeds from the $15 stamp go into the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, used to purchase valuable wetlands for the National Wildlife Refuge System. (Indeed, about 98 percent of the revenue from the stamp goes through the Fund to purchases these refuge wetlands.) It is no accident that we may have Ivory-billed Woodpeckers today because major chunks of stamp revenue has gone to such places as Cache RIver and White River National Wildlife Refuges. (It was interesting to note that both Senator Blanche Lincoln [D-AR] and Interior Secretary Gale Norton mentioned the stamp-and-woodpecker connection in relation to Cache River NWR at the ceremony today in Washington DC.) While some serious bird conservationists have been recommending "broadening" the stamp (all the while insisting that the stamp's essential goals be maintained), ALL concerned birders and bird conservationists should support the current stamp by buying the 2005-2006 stamp right now! After all, it's a bargain as a "$15 yearly pass" for all National Wildlife Refuges that charge for entry, and it's already doing a great deal of good for many bird species. Yes, it's NOT "just for waterfowl" or "just for hunters"! For more details on the current stamp program, look here: <http://www.fws.gov/duckstamps/> and <http://www.fws.gov/duckstamps/Info/Constituents/birder.htm> Paul J. Baicich Swarovski Birding National Wildlife Refuge Association P.O. Box 404 Oxon Hill, MD 20750 "Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." ~Lao Tzu -30-
