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Quacking up!

The Stamp Collecting Report, I'm Lloyd de Vries.

Not all stamps are for postal use. Some show that a tax or fee has been paid. And the
most popular of these in the U-S are the duck stamps — technically, the stamps issued
by the Fish and Wildlife Service to show that a license has been purchased for hunting
migratory waterfowl.

The current price of these stamps is 25 dollars, with the money going toward wildlife
habitat preservation. First issued in 1934, these stamps have always shown ducks, geese
or swans. The stamps are purchased not just by hunters, but by collectors and by bird
watchers who want to help support conservation.

Now, the federal agency is thinking about including a second species of bird on each
stamp that might be found in the same habitat, but isn’t hunted. The Fish and Wildlife
Service hopes that would increase sales... which have been slipping.

And you should hear the squawks! Most of the hunters, birders and collectors are against
it.

Still, this year Fish and Wildlife will allow artists to include a second species in the
paintings they submit to the competition that is held each year for the stamp designs.

I’m Lloyd de Vries of The Virtual Stamp Club. For more on stamps and stamp collecting,
visit virtual-stamp-club-dot-com.

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