# 3105j - 1996 32c Endangered Species: Gila Trout

US #3105j
1996 Gila Trout

• Part of set of 15 stamps picturing Endangered Species
• Issued during National Stamp Collecting Month

Stamp Category:  Commemorative
Set:  Endangered Species
Value:   32¢First-Class mail rate
First Day of Issue:  October 2, 1996
First Day City:  San Diego, California
Quantity Issued:  14,910,000
Printed by:  Ashton-Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method:  Lithographed
Format:  Panes of 15 (3 across, 5 down) from printing plates of 90 (9 across, 10 down)
Perforations:  11.1 x 11

Why the stamp was issued:  The pane of 15 Endangered Species stamps was issued as part of the US Postal Service’s National Stamp Collecting Month.  The theme for 1996 was “Collect and Protect.”  The USPS hoped these stamps would appeal to children, who would then become lifelong stamp collectors. 

About the stamp design:  The stamps show photographs of 15 animal species that live in America and re threatened with extinction.  The photos were taken by James Balog.  The animals chosen for the stamps are from all major geographic areas of the US. The Gila trout pictured on the stamp was a resident of a Fish and Wildlife Service facility in Mescalero, New Mexico.

First Day City: The First Day of Issue ceremony took place at the San Diego Zoo.  In 1996, the zoo was celebrating its 80^th birthday.  The country of Mexico issued its own pane of endangered species stamps on the same day and took part in the First Day of Issue ceremony.  (The stamps were not a joint issue.)  In addition to honored human guests, two sea lions, an Andean condor, and a North American timber wolf were also in attendance at the celebration.

Unusual fact about the Endangered Species stamps: The 1996 National Stamp Collecting Month was co-sponsored by the US Postal Service and the American Zoo and Aquarium Association.

About the Endangered Species Set: The species shown on the pane of Endangered Species stamps are: Black-footed Ferret, Schaus Swallowtail Butterfly, Brown Pelican, San Francisco Garter Snake, Ocelot, Gila Trout, Hawaiian Monk Seal, Thick-billed Parrot, California Condor, Wyoming Toad, Woodland Caribou, Florida manatee, Florida Panther, Piping Plover, and American Crocodile.  All of them are listed on the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants.

History this stamp represents: At one time the Gila trout could be found throughout the rivers and tributary streams of New Mexico and Arizona.  However, dams, logging, stream channeling, and road building radically altered the trout’s native waters, and by the 1960s the species had disappeared from the Arizona region.  In addition, water degradation, heavy fishing, and hybridization with other trout species had led to a steady decline in the New Mexico population.
In 1978 a recovery plan that confined populations to their native streams was implemented.  The outcome was less successful than anticipated – less than 10,000 fish survived, and many were stunted due to overcrowding and insufficient food sources.  Fortunately, breeding populations in the Gila Wilderness Area formed a strong enough base to be used in reintroduction.
Today, recovery efforts focus on creating “refuges” within streams.  This is accomplished by removing non-native trout from selected areas, erecting barriers to prevent their return, and then restocking the waters with Gila trout.  Through these efforts, populations have been restored in designated areas in both New Mexico and Arizona.  As conservationists continue to rehabilitate habitats and stock larger streams, it is hoped that the Gila trout can be “downlisted” to Threatened.