Press Release

Second Annual Restore the Wild Artwork Competition Expanded and Open

Richmond, VA — The Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is calling all artists! The Restore the Wild Artwork Competition is returning with expanded opportunities for artists to submit artwork supporting Restore the Wild’s mission of creating and maintaining habitat to help Virginia’s wildlife thrive.

Last year’s Restore the Wild Artwork Competition attracted 28 entries from around the state, with a wide variety of styles and mediums. The Restore the Wild committee was so impressed with the creativity shown in the submissions that they decided to expand the options to submit artwork for this year’s competition. This year, artists are invited to submit in the categories of fine art print, sticker, youth (age 16 and under), and “What Does Restore the Wild Mean to You?” See more details about submissions in the Restore the Wild Artwork Competition Rules and Guidelines. Please note that photography submissions are not allowed, Virginia has more than 900 species of wildlife whose numbers are in decline mostly because of impacts to their habitat—natural areas that provide necessary food, water, and shelter. DWR is the lead agency in Virginia for the conservation of wildlife and wildlife habitat. DWR’s Restore the Wild initiative allows DWR to expand the work the agency does to preserve, establish, and maintain vital wildlife habitat areas and keep Virginia’s wild places wild. Memberships and donations to Restore the Wild, along with revenue raised with the Run for the Wild virtual 5K run/walk, provide funds directly for DWR habitat projects.

This year’s species focus for the Artwork Competition is the loggerhead shrike, a bird species that has been identified as a Tier 1 Species of Greatest Conservation Need in the Virginia Wildlife Action Plan. Loggerhead shrikes are extraordinary birds that hunt for invertebrate and small vertebrate prey from both natural and artificial perches, including trees, shrubs, power lines, fence posts, etc. They hunt over areas with low grass and bare ground, and impale their prey on thorny shrubs, sharp broken branches and barbed wire.

Their ideal hunting habitat is early successional habitat—a term that biologists use to describe a vegetative community rich in herbaceous grasses and flowers that provide wildlife with food sources and shelter. In the shrike’s case, such habitat takes the form of grazed pastures with scattered shrubs. Early successional habitat only occurs for a brief time after an area has been disturbed in ways that limit the growth of small trees and bushes, either by natural disturbance such as wildlife, insect infestation, or severe wind storms, or by mechanical disturbance such as herbicide application, mowing, or prescribed fire. When plant communities age without disturbance, they don’t provide the same benefits to the resident wildlife. Many project funded with Restore the Wild initiative dollars are aimed at creating this essential early successional habitat on which many species depend.

Restore the Wild’s Artwork Competition calls for submissions from the public (excluding photography) that reflect Restore the Wild’s mission to restore and create natural habitats vital to the survival of Virginia’s wildlife. The subject focus of 2022’s artwork is the loggerhead shrike. Judges evaluated the works not only on their artistic merit, but also on their precision in illustrating the species’ physical characteristics and habitat. Make sure to visit the Artwork Competition Rules and Guidelines for complete details.