**2005-2006 FEDERAL DUCK STAMP FACT SHEET**\
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The 2005-2006 Federal Duck Stamp program promises to be one of the most
exciting Duck Stamp offerings in recent memory. In addition to the
beautiful artwork of artist Mark Anderson, this year's program offers
innovative features and new products for both serious and casual stamp
collectors. The First Day of Sale ceremony will be held in Washington,
D.C. at the Russell Senate Office Building at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday,
June 30. Federal Duck Stamps are valid from July 1 through June 30 of
the following year.

The image for the Federal Duck Stamp is selected through an annual
national competition that draws entries from some of America's top
wildlife artists. The Federal Duck Stamp competition, the only federal
art contest mandated by the U.S. Congress, is often cited as America's
premier wildlife art competition and winning the contest is considered
the highlight of a wildlife artist's career.

Serious philatelists, stamp collectors, will be pleased to learn that
renowned stamp engraver Czeslaw Slania, who died recently, designed this
year's Federal Duck Stamp. Although not able to complete the engraving,
Slania did finish the preliminary stamp design and intaglio study prior
to his death on March 17, 2005. Piotr Naszarkowski, his long-time
protégé and associate did the actual stamp engraving. Naszarkowski has
engraved approximately 75 stamps primarily for European postal
administrations and the United States Postal Service.

This year's Federal Duck Stamp design is reminiscent of Federal Duck
Stamps of the past. Unlike stamps produced in more recent years, the new
water-activated (lick-and-stick) stamps include a great deal of intaglio
printing, a technique that requires engraving on a metal plate to raise
the ink on the printed surface. U.S. currency, for example, is printed
using the intaglio printing process.

While the water-activated stamp design was inspired by the past; the
self-adhesive (peel-and-stick) stamps have a more modern design and
include a philatelic first. The self-adhesive stamps incorporate a
process known as stamp debossing in which parts of the image are
recessed. The 2005-2006 Federal Duck Stamp is the first stamp ever
issued by the federal government using this printing technique.

The added intaglio printing and stamp debossing contribute more than
just philatelic interest to the 2005-2006 Federal Duck Stamp. The two
printing techniques also add a security feature for law enforcement.
Since each stamp will have a definite texture, law enforcement officers
will be able to quickly and easily determine if a Federal Duck Stamp is
genuine or counterfeit.

Both versions of the Federal Duck Stamp were printed by Banknote
Corporation of America (BCA), located in North Carolina. BCA is a
subsidiary of Sennett Security Products. Banknote has printed the
Federal Duck Stamp three of the past four years.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service will also offer special Duck
Stamp-related products to appeal to a broad range of collectors. For the
first time ever, serious Federal Duck Stamp collectors will have the
opportunity to purchase uncut press sheets of both versions of the
Federal Duck Stamp. Although a few press sheets of the 50^th^
anniversary Federal Duck Stamp were auctioned in 1984, this is the first
time full press sheets are available to the general public. The
water-activated press sheet includes four panes of twenty stamps. The
self-adhesive press sheet includes eighteen panes of one stamp. Only one
hundred water-activated press sheets and one hundred self-adhesive press
sheets will be available for sale.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service will also offer stamp-related products
for the more casual collector. Familiar products will be offered such as
the Artist Card, which includes the new Federal Duck Stamp and the
Federal Duck Stamp issued three years prior, and the First Day of Issue
Ceremony Program. One new item this year is a First Day of Sale cover
with a silk cache. The First Day cover is an envelope bearing a silk
image of the Federal Duck Stamp, an actual Federal Duck Stamp, a
first-class postage stamp, and the First Day of Sale cancellation mark.

The Federal Duck Stamp Program is considered one of the most successful
conservation efforts ever initiated in the United States. Waterfowl
hunters age 16 or older are required to have a current Federal Duck
Stamp in their possession when hunting waterfowl.

Since its inception in 1934, the Federal Duck Stamp Program has
generated over \$700 million to preserve more than 5.2 million acres of
wildlife habitat. Every dollar raised through the sale of Federal Duck
Stamps is deposited directly into the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund.
Approximately 98% of the funds are used to purchase wetland habitat for
the National Wildlife Refuge System. Hundreds of species live in these
habitats and nearly one-third of America's threatened and endangered
species rely on wetlands for their survival. Wetlands also help purify
our drinking water by filtering out harmful chemicals, sediments, and
wastes long before the water reaches our water supply. Finally, these
lands provide places for outdoor recreation such as hunting, fishing,
hiking, biking, wildlife observation, and photography.

A noteworthy success of the National Wildlife Refuge System and the
Federal Duck Stamp Program is the recent discovery of the Ivory Billed
Woodpecker in Cache River National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Arkansas.
The Ivory Billed Woodpecker was thought to be extinct for more than
sixty years until its discovery this year on refuge land purchased with
Federal Duck Stamp dollars.

In addition to its benefits to artists, conservationists, stamp
collectors, and wildlife, the Federal Duck Stamp Program benefits all
people who enjoy the great outdoors. Possession of a signed, current
Federal Duck Stamp permits free admission to all National Wildlife
Refuges that are open to the public. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
manages 545 National Wildlife Refuges on nearly 100 million acres of
land throughout the United States. There is at least one National
Wildlife Refuge in every state.

The Federal Duck Stamp Office administers the Federal Duck Stamp
Program. For more information, please see the Duck Stamp Office web site
at [www.fws.gov/duckstamps or call
703-358-2000](http://www.fws.gov/duckstamps or call 703-358-2000).

For technical details on the stamp production, please see pages 67 and
68 of the May 26, 2005, Postal Bulletin at the following web site:
[www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/bulletin/2005/pb22155.pdf](http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/bulletin/2005/pb22155.pdf)

Federal Duck Stamps and Duck Stamp related products such as the press
sheets, Artist Cards, ceremony programs, and First Day covers are
available through the U.S. Postal Service and Amplex Corporation. Please
note: stamps and stamp products cannot be purchased prior to the June
30, 2005 First Day of Sale. For more information, contact

U.S. Postal Service: [www.usps.com](http://www.usps.com/) or
1-800-782-6724

Amplex Corporation: [www.duckstamp.com](http://www.duckstamp.com/) or
1-800-852-4897

To contact the 2005-2006 Federal Duck Stamp Artist:

Mark S. Anderson

5108 S. Ash Grove

Sioux Falls, SD 57108

Phone (605) 367-3055

www.markandersonwildlife.com