[Vision2020] Idaho's State Quarter Features falcon

[Tom Hansen]

>From yesterday's (July 25, 2006) Spokesman Review -

----------------------------------------------------------

Idaho's state quarter features falcon 

Design Photo:
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/blogs/boise/media/quarter.gif

John Miller 
Associated Press
July 25, 2006

BOISE - The image of a peregrine falcon will grace Idaho's state quarter, a
choice made by former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne to honor the role an Idaho raptor
recovery center played in helping save the birds from extinction.

The selection of the animal that's been Idaho's official raptor since 2004
was announced Monday by Gov. Jim Risch at the World Center for Birds of Prey
here.

Risch replaced Kempthorne, who was confirmed May 26 as President Bush's
interior secretary.

The World Center for Birds of Prey, which works on raptor recovery, is run
by The Peregrine Fund, a $10 million endowment located in Idaho since 1984.
The center got its start in New York in 1970.

That year, the peregrine falcon population had dwindled to just two dozen
documented breeding pairs in the continental United States, the result of
poisoning from pesticides including DDT. Since then, the center's biologists
hatched more than 4,000 peregrines, releasing many into the wild before the
bird was finally removed from the federal endangered species list in 1999.

"Idaho is a key part of the legacy of this bird," Kempthorne said Monday in
a telephone interview from Washington, D.C.

Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says as many as 3,000 breeding
pairs of peregrine falcons can be found nesting across Canada, Mexico and
the United States, including in downtown Boise. The birds, some of which
favor urban high-rises as nesting sites,hunt pigeons and other small game.

Trish Nixon, a raptor specialist, brought a peregrine named Jess perched on
her arm to join in the unveiling of the quarter design Monday.

"I couldn't be more thrilled," Nixon said. "I'm biased, but I can't think of
a better symbol for the state. They're magnificent."

She noted that peregrines are highly skilled hunters, very adaptable, small
but very powerful and can dive at speeds of up to 240 mph.

"They're a bird to be reckoned with, if you're another bird out there in the
wild," she said. 

Dan Harpole, head of the state Commission on the Arts, said, "I think as
Idahoans we can be really proud of the final product and really pleased with
how it turned out."

Originally, there had been 1,200 submissions for the quarter design from
Idaho residents.

A year ago, the entrants were winnowed down to 10 by a panel of community
leaders, artists and historians organized by the Idaho Commission of the
Arts.

Kempthorne further narrowed the list to five, sending those concepts to the
U.S. Mint.

Earlier this year, the Mint returned three design proposals to Kempthorne,
who chose the peregrine falcon from that group, which also included a
farmland tapestry and an image depicting Idaho's state song with the first
two lines together with the state flower and state butterfly.

The U.S. Mint gave its final OK in June to the coin, which also features
Idaho's outline, with a star marking Boise as the state capital. It will
begin circulating in the summer of 2007.

"It's a tremendous success story," Kempthorne said of the falcon. "This is
one of the few species that has been recovered and delisted. It's an
inspiring story of recovery. The coin also says 'Esto Perpetua,' or 'May it
be forever.' That's for the state, this species and other species."

Not everybody was enamored of Kempthorne's choice.

Rick Johnson, director of the Idaho Conservation League, said he would have
preferred a quarter depicting the Frank Church-River of No Return
Wilderness, with the Salmon River cutting through it.

Still, Johnson said the falcon is better than some ideas.

"Let me just say I'm happy it's not a potato," Johnson said.

Risch, meanwhile, said he thought the design was appropriate.

"In college, my favorite course was ornithology," Risch said in an
interview. "I've always had a soft spot for birds. From a personal
standpoint, I like the look. Not everybody agrees, but the choice has been
made, and it's not mine to criticize."

The quarter selection comes as Idaho is debating whether to remove federal
protections from hundreds of gray wolves and grizzly bears in Idaho and
surrounding states.

In an interview, Peter Jenny, The Peregrine Fund's acting president, was
pleased with the selection, saying he thought it was symbolic of rare
successful attempts to help species that had been on the verge of
disappearing.

"The peregrine falcon was a success story that took place at a time when
most reports on the environment were pretty dismal," said Jenny in an
interview from Sheridan, Wyo. "I think the peregrine falcon would be
emblematic of what we can accomplish when we work together."

----------------------------------------------------------

At least it ain't a bronco or a potato, huh?

Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in
sideways, chocolate in one hand, a drink in the other, body thoroughly used
up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO HOO. What a ride!'"