Stamp Sales to Help Raise Funds for Game Bird Conservation Projects
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (CDFW) 2026-2027 upland game bird stamp contest is here. The winning entry will be featured on the state’s next upland game bird stamp.
The 2026-2027 stamp will feature the sooty grouse. Entries will be accepted from November 2 through December 4.
The annual California Upland Game Bird Stamp Art Contest is open to all U.S. residents ages 18 and older, excluding current and former CDFW employees.
When the spring sun crests the horizon, the aptly named sooty grouse broadcasts its low frequency boom. An unassuming, feathered coat of soot and ash colors this large but elusive, stout-bodied gamebird of the Pacific’s conifer forests.
Sooty grouse perch tall in evergreen trees during courtship displays when the male, slightly smaller in stature than the female, puffs up its body and neck feathers to reveal bright yellow “apteria” — wrinkled skin that covers inflatable air sacs. Fringed by a ruff of white feathers, these air sacs produce a deep, resonant, rhythmic boom that is likened to the sound of a breath blown across a water jug. The call permeates the dense forest and can reach females up to a mile away. Above the male’s eyes, a patch of skin known as a “comb” also swells during courtship to accentuate its color, ranging from yellow to hues of red. Females wear a darker, slate-gray coat and are more intricately mottled with brown, buff, white and gray feathers to camouflage seamlessly with the forest floor where they nest and rear their chicks.
Entries must include at least one sooty grouse, preferably in a habitat or setting representative of California. Entries will be judged on originality, artistic composition, anatomical accuracy and suitability for reproduction as a stamp and print.
The contest will be judged by a panel of experts in the fields of ornithology, conservation, art and printing. The winning artist will be selected during a judging event in December.
An upland game bird validation is required for hunting migratory and resident upland game birds in California. The money generated from stamp sales is dedicated to upland game bird-related conservation projects, education, hunting opportunities and outreach. CDFW sells approximately 150,000 upland game bird validations annually. Any individual who purchases an upland game bird validation may request their free collectible stamp by visiting wildlife.ca.gov/licensing/collector-stamps. For collectors who do not purchase a hunting license or upland game bird validation, or for hunters who wish to purchase additional collectible stamps, an order form is also available on the website.
For contest information and entry forms, visit wildlife.ca.gov/upland-game-bird-stamp.
Photo: 2013 winning entry of sooty grouse by Broderick Crawford.
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Media Contacts:
Matt Meshriy, CDFW Wildlife Branch
Amanda McDermott, CDFW Communications, (916) 738-9641