2024 Canadian Duck Stamp to Feature a Pair of Buffleheads

Wildlife Habitat Canada announces Vancouver-based artist as winning entry

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, 2024

The 2024 Canadian Wildlife Habitat Conservation Stamp and Print will feature a pair of bufflehead ducks painted by DJ Cleland-Hura. A panel of expert judges selected Cleland-Hura’s painting titled, “Proud Pair – Buffleheads,” from dozens of entries.

Cleland-Hura has won numerous wildlife stamp competitions that have raised funds for habitat conservation. Most recently, his painting depicting a pair of pintails graced the Canadian Wildlife Habitat Conservation Stamp in 2020.

All waterfowlers in Canada are required to purchase the stamp to validate their migratory bird hunting permits. Since the program’s inception in 1985, stamp and print sales have generated over $62 million. The funds are administered by Wildlife Habitat Canada and have been invested to support more than 1,600 conservation projects across Canada including Delta Waterfowl’s Duck Production and HunteR3 initiatives.

However, the cost of the “Canadian Duck Stamp” has been $8.50 since 1991. The federal migratory game bird hunting permit also costs an additional $8.50, totaling a resident waterfowler’s purchase to $17, yet just $8.50 of each sale is allocated to WHC for grant distribution. According to Jim Fisher, Delta Waterfowl’s vice president of Canadian policy, a price increase is worth considering to protect the stamp’s waterfowl conservation legacy.

“The stamp’s benefits to Canada’s waterfowl and waterfowl hunters is undeniable, and Delta is deeply grateful for the support WHC has provided to our programs over the years,” Fisher said. “The U.S. Duck Stamp saw a rise nearly 10 years ago to the current $25 price, yet we have gone over three decades without a price increase. This leaves WHC with tough grant choices and less meaningful impact on our hunter/conservation legacy.”

The 2024 winning painter of “Proud Pair – Buffleheads,” DJ Cleland-Hura has lived as an artist and teacher on the western coast of Canada for the last 30 years. His work has been featured at Pixar Animation Studios, Vancouver Film School, and The Animation Workshop in Denmark. He now lives on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast, where he and his wife create original works for their shared studio. He credits his inspiration to nature, stating, “For me, my art is the best way to repay what nature has given me. It is my form of praise, of homage, and of thanks.”

For information on the availability of stamps, prints, and other related products, visit: whc.org. Also, keep an eye out for iconic WHC prints at Delta’s Canadian fundraising events. —Christy Sweigart