To obtain high-resolution images of the stamp for media use only, e-mail roy.a.betts@usps.gov.

EMPIRE, MI — One of the largest freshwater dune systems on Earth is now featured on a U.S. postage stamp, which goes on sale today at Post Offices nationwide.

The Great Lakes Dunes is the tenth stamp pane in the Postal Service’s Nature of America educational series that features the beauty and complexity of major plant and animal communities in the United States. Found near all five of the Great Lakes, the dunes are part of highly dynamic landscapes where plants and animals interact with wind, water and sand.

“As one of the nation’s leading corporate citizens committed to environmental stewardship, the Postal Service is proud to honor the Great Lakes Dunes on stamps,” said Tom Samra, vice president, Facilities, U.S. Postal Service, at the first-day-of-issue stamp ceremony for the new 42-cent stamp. “These dunes are a wonderful example of America’s amazing natural variety. This place is a playground for children of all ages. And what better way to share the importance of this place than through our stamp program.”

Joining Samra in dedicating the new stamp: U.S. Representative Dave Camp, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Superintendent Dusty Shultz, Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear Director Susan Pocklington, and the Postal Service’s Stamp Services executive director David Failor. The ceremony is being held at the Dune Climb, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, in Empire, MI, at 10 a.m. ET.

The dunes are located close to the water’s edge and some reach beyond beaches of sand or small stones. The most extensive and most massive dune formations lie along the eastern shores of Lake Michigan, where conditions are perfect for dune development.

Almost all of the dunes derived from rocky materials dropped by melting glaciers at the end of the last ice age.

Coastal dune plant communities begin to form when hardy pioneer vegetation, such as marram grass, traps and holds sand particles carried ashore by wind and water. In time, more plants take root, and they in turn support a wide variety of insects, mammals and other wildlife. Numerous birds, including endangered piping plovers, have found a summer haven at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, the area featured on the stamp pane, which was named for a huge dune formation that vaguely resembles a sleeping bear.

To illustrate the diversity of species associated with Great Lakes Dunes, artist John D. Dawson depicted more than 27 different kinds of plants and animals in his colorful acrylic painting. A description of the dunes and a numbered key to the artwork appear on the back of the stamp pane, along with a corresponding list of common and scientific names for 27 selected species.

Previous issuances in the Nature of America series were Sonoran Desert (1999), Pacific Coast Rain Forest (2000), Great Plains Prairie (2001), Longleaf Pine Forest (2002), Arctic Tundra (2003), Pacific Coral Reef (2004), Northeast Deciduous Forest (2005), Southern Florida Wetlands (2006) and Alpine Tundra (2007).

The 42-cent Nature of America: Great Lakes Dunes commemorative stamps in ten designs go on sale nationwide today and also can be purchased online at usps.com.

Great Lakes Dunes Philatelic Fact Sheet

Philatelic Products

There are six philatelic products available for this stamp issue:

• 462762, First-Day Cover w/Full Pane, $6.70
• 462764, Cancelled Full Pane, $6.70
• 462766/896700/896701, Premium Stamped Cards, $8.95
• 462784, Uncut Press Sheet, $33.60
• 462791, Ceremony Program w/10 stamps, $6.95
• 462793, First-Day Cancellation Keepsake FPC/Can Pn), $10

How to Order First-Day Covers

Stamp Fulfillment Services also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog. Customers can request a free catalog by calling 800-STAMP-24 or writing to:

Information Fulfillment
Dept 6270
U.S. Postal Service
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO  64121-9014

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark

Customers have 60 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office, by telephone at 800-STAMP-24, or at the Postal Store website at www.usps.com/shop. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes to themselves or others, and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:

Nature of America: The Great Lakes Dunes Stamp
Great Lakes Dunes
First Day of Issue
10234 West Front Street
Empire, MI  49630-9998

After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark. All orders must be postmarked by Dec. 3, 2008.

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For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional on this issue, please go to http://about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf.

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