Friends of the Migratory Bird/Duck Stamp

04/22/2026

Congratulations to 14-year old Thora Larson from South Dakota for winning third place🥉in the 2026 National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest! 🦆 "Simple joys" is an acrylic and oil painting of a blue-winged teal, and is an outstanding example of the talent this Junior Duck Stamp Program cultivates : https://www.fws.gov/service/buy-junior-duck-stamp
📷Blue-winged teal painted by Thora Larson (c) USFWS Used by Permission

04/22/2026

Congratulations to the very talented 14-year old Jisun Yoon from New Jersey for winning second place with this acrylic painting of a mallard hen in the 2026 National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest!🦆 The piece, "Lunch at the Water's Edge" is an amazing example of this program that connects youth with the outdoors. 🥈 Support conservation education and our youth by buying these stamps: https://www.fws.gov/service/buy-junior-duck-stamp
📷Mallard hen painted by Jisun Yoon, (c) USFWS Used by Permission.

04/22/2026

What an exciting day for the Junior Duck Stamp Program! 🦆Congratulations to Nina Liang from Texas for winning first place in this year’s National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest! 🥇Nina took top honors in the contest with an oil painting of a pair of blue-winged teal. The art, titled "Sailors of Mustard Algae," will be made into the 2026-2027 Junior Duck Stamp, which goes on sale June 26, 2026! Learn more about the Junior Duck Stamp🦆 : https://www.fws.gov/press-release/2026-04/nina-liang-17-wins-us-fish-and-wildlife-service-2026-national-junior-duck
📷Blue-winged teal painted by Nina Liang, (c) USFWS used by permission.

04/22/2026

A talented young artist from Texas has taken top honors at the National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest. A blue-winged teal by 17-year-old Nina Liang, will grace the 2026-2027 Junior Duck Stamp, which raises funds to educate and engage our nation’s youth in wildlife and wetlands conservation and out...

03/14/2026

Happy early birthday to the National Wildlife Refuge System!

On March 14, 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established the first national wildlife refuge at Pelican Island, Florida, to protect brown pelicans from slaughter by market hunters.

One hundred twenty-three years later, the National Wildlife Refuge System includes more than 570 national wildlife refuges, 38 wetland management districts and five marine national monuments. With progress like that, celebrating is as easy as 1-2-3!

01/16/2026

🎨 Calling all young artists! The 2026 Junior Duck Stamp contest is now open!

Using scientific and wildlife observation principles, the Junior Duck Stamp program encourages students in kindergarten through high school to observe, understand, and ultimately share what they have learned about waterfowl conservation.

All K-12 students attending public, private, tribal, or home schools, or non-formal education groups and after school groups in the United States and U.S. Territories are eligible to enter.

States run individual competitions that lead to one national winner becoming a stamp sold by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and U.S. Postal Service. Washington entries are due March 15.

More information: https://www.fws.gov/program/junior-duck-stamp/junior-duck-stamp-contest-information

Photo: the top three winners of the 2025 National Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest (USFWS/J. Wright)

10/17/2025

In case you missed it, here's the full article from Science Friday on the Duck Stamp Contest:

A new group of social media-savvy wildlife artists is bringing a beloved conservation tradition to TikTok. It’s ruffled some feathers.

09/30/2025

https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/federal-duck-stamp-art-contest-2025

Duck stamps help fund wetland conservation across the country. The art that adorns them is chosen through a beloved (and intense) competition.

09/20/2025

for more: https://www.fws.gov/press-release/2025-09/minnesota-artist-james-hautman-wins-2025-federal-duck-stamp-art-contest

BREAKING DUCK NEWS! 🦆
The 2025 Federal Duck Stamp Art Contest winner was just announced!

Congratulations to James Hautman of Minnesota, with an acrylic painting of three buffleheads. His artwork will become the 2026–2027 Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp.

Since 1934, Federal Duck Stamp sales to hunters, bird watchers, outdoor enthusiasts, and collectors have raised more than $1.2 billion to conserve over 6 million acres of habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Congrats to all the winners! See the comments for the 2nd and 3rd place finishers.

Image by © James Hautman, used by USFWS with permission.

09/17/2025

This is THE week! The 2025 Federal Art Contest is this Thursday and Friday, and we hope you join us in-person or online to support this incredible conservation program!

🦆 The judging is open to the public and will take place at the National Wildlife Visitor Center at Patuxent Research Refuge in Laurel, MD. But if you can't make it to Maryland, don't worry - you can watch it from the comfort of your own home 📺: https://www.fws.gov/event/2025-federal-duck-stamp-contest

Join us to find out whose art will help raise tens of millions of dollars for wildlife conservation!

Image: 2025-2026 Federal Duck Stamp featuring a pair of spectacled eiders painted by Adam Grimm from South Dakota.
© USFWS