Long-tail Duck with Decoy: 2009 - 2010 Federal Duck Stamp

Winning the Federal Duck Stamp Contest is one of the most coveted honors a wildlife artist can hope to achieve. Add to that the creation of the first-ever Fine Art Giclée Canvas of a Duck Stamp Print and Joshua Spies has doubly made his mark in Duck Stamp History. Spies competed against 270 entrants in the 2008 contest that determines which image would adorn the 2009-2010 Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp. The program has been in place since 1934, when it was determined the stamp itself would act as the federal license for hunting migratory waterfowl. Since then this license evolved into a fund that has generated over $700 million to purchase or lease over 5.2 million acres of waterfowl habitat in the United States.