DNREC’s Delaware Waterfowl Stamp Program helps raise funds for waterfowl conservation. Hunters and stamp collectors buy stamps and prints. The money raised is used to restore and improve wetland habitat vital for migratory waterfowl. DNREC’s Division of Fish and Wildlife began the program in 1980, in partnership with Delaware Ducks Unlimited. The program has generated more than $3.6 million.

This Year’s Waterfowl Stamp Contest

Entries are now being accepted for the 2026 Waterfowl Stamp Contest. Artwork entries must depict a Goldeneye Duck in Delaware’s coastal areas or inland bays. The waterfowl subject must be the focal point of the artwork.

Entries must be postmarked on or before 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on Friday, July 31, 2026. Judging will take place during the week of Aug. 18, 2026.

The artwork selected as “Best in Show” during the 2026 contest will be featured on the Delaware Waterfowl Stamp issued for the July 1, 2027 to June 30, 2028 hunting year.

The 2026/2027 Waterfowl Stamp

A painting of a Northern Shoveler in a marshland habitat, by Gerald Putt of Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania, will grace the 2026/2027 Delaware Waterfowl Stamp. Mr. Putt receives a $2,500 cash prize and 150 artist’s proofs of the limited edition print series of his first-place entry.

The annual competition drew 14 entries for the 2026/2027 Delaware Waterfowl Stamp. The Waterfowl Stamp contest specified that submitted artwork must include a Northern Shoveler in a marshland habitat. A panel of judges selected the winning artwork that will adorn the Delaware Waterfowl Stamp for the year’s hunting season.

DNREC retains rights to use the original artwork. In addition to the stamp, DNREC also produces prints available for purchase.

Delaware Waterfowl Stamps

Those who hunt waterfowl in Delaware are required to have a Delaware Waterfowl Stamp. The cost of a Delaware Waterfowl Stamp is $15 for residents ages 16 to 64 and $15 for non-residents ages 16 and older. Delaware residents ages 65 and older are exempt from purchasing a Delaware Waterfowl Stamp.

Waterfowl stamps can be purchased online, in-person at an authorized license agent, or at the licensing desk inside DNREC’s Richardson and Robbins Building, at 89 Kings Highway, in Dover.

Hunters who want a physical copy of their expired Waterfowl Stamp can request one online.

Buying Physical Stamps and Stamp Art

For stamp collectors, past Delaware Waterfowl Stamps and prints are available for purchase using the Waterfowl Stamps Order Form.

Habitat Improvements

Funds from the sales of waterfowl stamps and prints have been used to restore and improve habitat for waterfowl and a diversity of other wildlife at several state wildlife areas. They include Assawoman, Little Creek, Ted Harvey and Woodland Beach state wildlife areas.

The program also supports a partnership with Ducks Unlimited to restore maritime wetland habitat in Canada. Canadian maritime habitats are breeding grounds for many waterfowl that migrate through and winter in Delaware.

More Information

For more information on Delaware Waterfowl Stamps and prints, please contact the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife Recreational Licensing Program, at 302-739-9918 or by email, at DFWRecLic@delaware.gov.

Did you know there’s also a Delaware Trout Stamp Contest?

Related Topics:  art, contest, education, fish and wildlife, fish-wildlife, hunting, outreach, stamp, waterfowl, wildlife