BROOKLYN, NY — On October 11, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. – 12 noon, the Brooklyn Post Office and the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Prospect Park Zoo held a special unveiling ceremony to commemorate the stamp which is helping to save vanishing species 11-cents at a time — specifically tigers, African and Asian elephants, rhinos, great apes and marine turtles. The ceremony is being held at the Prospect Park Zoo, located at 450 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn NY.

To commemorate the day, a pictorial cancellation postmark was also created. On sale was the beautiful stamps and a Keepsake Souvenir Card with the stamp and special cancellation postmark.

The net proceeds from the sales of the new Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamp will be transferred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to support the Multinational Species Conservation Funds, which are dedicated to conserving threatened species worldwide.

“The new wildlife stamp is a tremendous opportunity to help save wildlife around the world in a financially responsible way,” said John Calvelli, Wildlife Conservation Society’s Executive Vice President of Public Affairs. “The Wildlife Conservation Society is proud to work with the United States Postal Service to save some of our globe’s most endangered creatures.”

“The Save Vanishing Species stamps mark the fourth semipostal issued by the Postal Service. These types of stamps provide an extremely convenient way for the American public to contribute to help protect threatened and vanishing species,” said Frank Calabrese, USPS District Manager for the Triboro area of the postal service.

Roxanne Hosein, Manager of Marketing for the Postal Service said, “Five million sheets of stamps have been made initially and will be reprinted based on customer demand. The stamps sell for 55 cents each — 11 cents more than an individual First-Class Mail stamp —and $11 per sheet of 20.”

Multinational Species Conservation Funds (MSCF) are comprised of the African Elephant Conservation Fund, Asian Elephant Conservation Fund, Great Ape Conservation Fund, Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Fund and Marine Turtle Conservation Fund, among which proceeds of the stamp will be divided. Bi-partisan legislation creating the semipostal stamp was passed and signed into law in September 2010 as the Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Act of 2010.The Multinational Species Coalition, an alliance of conservationists, zoos, veterinarians, animal welfare groups, circuses and sportsmen, advocates for the MSCF and is committed to bringing greater attention to this stamp and the funds it was designed to support.

The stamp features an illustration of a tiger cub by artist Nancy Stahl. The artwork on the full sheet of 20 stamps is dark green and includes silhouettes of a rhinoceros, a tiger, a gorilla, Asian and African elephants and a marine turtle. Stahl based both the stamp art and the silhouettes on photographs of wildlife. The phrases “Save Vanishing Species” and “Amur tiger cub” appear on the left side of the stamp. Derry Noyes served as the art director, designer and typographer for the stamp.

Prior to this new stamp, three semipostal stamps have been issued by the U.S. Postal Service. Today, only the Breast Cancer Research stamp is still available for purchase:

· Breast Cancer Research, 1998–current. Net proceeds of nearly $75 million to date have gone to the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense.

· Heroes of 2001, 2002–2004. Net proceeds of $10.5 million went to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. No longer available.

· Stop Family Violence, 2003–2006. Net proceeds of $3.1 million went to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. No longer available.

A Save Vanishing Species note card set, which contains 10 blank cards featuring the image of the stamp, 10 envelopes and 10 stamps, and sells for $15.95, is available online at usps.com/shop. The Save Vanishing Species stamps are available for purchase online as well and at most post offices.

The Multinational Species Coalition includes:

African Wildlife Foundation

International Elephant Foundation

American Bird Conservancy

International Rhino Foundation

American Veterinary Medical Association

Jane Goodall Institute

Association of Zoos and Aquariums

National Audubon Society

Bonobo Conservation Initiative

National Wildlife Federation

Born Free USA

The Nature Conservancy

Cheetah Conservation Fund

Ocean Conservancy

Chelonian Research Foundation

Safari Club International Foundation

Conservation International

Sea Turtle Conservancy

Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International

Sierra Club

Defenders of Wildlife

The WILD Foundation

Fauna & Flora International

Wildlife Alliance

Feld Entertainment, Inc.

Wildlife Conservation Society

Humane Society of the United States / International

Wildlife Management Institute

International Crane Foundation

World Wildlife Fund

International Fund for Animal Welfare


For more information on the semipostal stamp and the coalition, visit fws.gov/international/semipostal. To learn more about the Prospect Park Zoo and their schedule of events, www.prospectparkzoo.com.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

We’re everywhere so you can be anywhere: www.uspseverywhere.com

# # #

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. We’re everywhere so you can be anywhere: www.uspseverywhere.com.

With 32,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $67 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 29th in the 2010 Fortune 500. Black Enterprise and Hispanic Business magazines ranked the Postal Service as a leader in workforce diversity. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency six consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.

Contact:

Prospect Park Zoo: Sophie Bass, 212-439-6527; sbass@wcs.org

USPS: Connie Chirichello, 973-580-1675, congetta.chirichello@usps.gov


The Wildlife Conservation Society saves wildlife and wild places worldwide. We do so through science, global conservation, education and the management of the world’s largest system of urban wildlife parks, led by the flagship Bronx Zoo. Together these activities change attitudes towards nature and help people imagine wildlife and humans living in harmony. WCS is committed to this mission because it is essential to the integrity of life on Earth.

Prospect Park Zoo – $8.00 for adults, $6 for seniors 65 and older, $5 for kids 3-12, free for children under 3. Zoo hours are 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. weekdays, and to 5:30 P.M. on weekends and holidays, April through October. The Prospect Park Zoo is located at 450 Flatbush Avenue in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. For further information, call 718-399-7339 or visit www.prospectparkzoo.com.