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Friday 24 January 2020

1214) Birds of Prey and Owls , Netherlands: "Experience Nature" Stamp Series: The First 10 Stamp Sheet of 2020, brought out by PostNL featuring Osprey, Honey Buzzard, Red Kite, Short-eared Owl, Montagu's Harrier, Common Kestrel, Hen Harrier, Hobby, Long-eared Owl and White-tailed Eagle: Stamp Set issue Date: 02.01.2020:

1214) Birds of Prey and Owls , Netherlands: "Experience Nature" Stamp Series: The First 10 Stamp Sheet of 2020, brought out by PostNL featuring Osprey, Honey Buzzard, Red Kite, Short-eared Owl, Montagu's Harrier, Common Kestrel, Hen Harrier, Hobby, Long-eared Owl and White-tailed Eagle: Stamp Set issue Date: 02.01.2020:

On 02.01.2020, PostNL has brought out a Stamp Series titled "Experience Nature - Birds of Prey and Owls", which features a set of ten stamps in ten different designs.

These postage stamps are marked "Nederland I", the denomination for items up to 20 grams in weight, marked for postage inNetherlands.

The stamp sheet is part of the "Experience Nature Series" of stamps. The first such series was published in 2018 and the second in 2019.

For the third series, issued now (01/2020), contains species of birds that are having a particularly difficult time. Most of them are on the "Dutch Red List of breeding birds"  in the Netherlands or on the "Dutch Red List of Migratory Birds/Winter Visitors" in the Netherlands.

All the photos on the stamps have been sourced from Buiten-Beeld" (the Dutch Nature Photography Image Bank).

Birds of Prey:

Birds of Prey and Owls is the first stamp sheet from the third Series. Later in 2020, there will be stamps featuring Farmland Birds (24.02.2020), Coastal Birds (15.06.2020) and Forest and Heathland Birds (14.09.2020).

Birds of Prey are carnivores that hunt for prey or live off cadavers. They can be recognised by their large curved beaks and claws with sharp nails, three toes at the front and one toe at the back.

Owls are predominantly nocturnal birds of prey and generally live on small mammals such as mice and small birds.

The Eagle Owl is the largest owl and catches the largest prey - from birds up to the size of buzzards to mammals up to the size of foxes.

The Little Owl is Netherlands smallest owl, which catches earthworms and May bugs.

Within the Birds of Prey there are two orders - the Accipitriformes and the Falconiformes.

The last order includes all types of Falcons. Within the Accipitriformes order Ospreys form a separate family (Pandionidae).

Taxonomically, Owls belong to the Strigiformes order. Within this order, Barn Owls belong to a separate family (Tytonidae) from the other Owls (Strigidae).

Owls have a "reversible toe" - meaning that they hold their prey with either two toes forward and two toes backwards or three toes forward and one backwards, as in the case of Ospreys.

The stamps depict (from left to right) the following birds -

Osprey, Honey Buzzard, Red Kite, Short-eared Owl, Montagu's Harrier, Common Kestrel, Hen Harrier, Hobby, Long-eared Owl and White-tailed Eagle.

Transparent images of seven of the ten birds have been incorporated into a separate graphic layer on the Stamp Sheet - The Long-eared Owl, Osprey, Red Kite, Hobby, Hen Harrier, Common Kestrel and White-tailed eagle.

Most of the birds on the stamps are on the Dutch Red List of breeding birds or migratory birds/winter visitors in the Netherlands. The number of bird species in the danger zone has increased by nine, as compared to the previous list of 2004. Now 10 species are seriously endangered, such as the Short-eared Owl and the Little Bittern.

The Experience Nature - Birds and Owls Stamp Sheet has been designed by graphic designer Frank Janse. On the sheet, the 10 birds were given their own stamp and depicted in their natural  environment. In some cases, the image or the background continues onto the adjacent stamp and onto the sheet edge.


The Miniature Sheet (MS) depicting 10 Birds of Prey & Owls as described above.


Two First Day Covers (FDCs) above and below affixed with five stamps each. The Special Cancellation Handstamp/Postmark bears the date of cancellation - "02.01.2020".




Two Presentation Packs - one above and the other below









For other interesting posts on issues from the Royal Dutch Mint, Netherlands and PostNL, please visit the following links:

Posts from Belgium & Luxembourg:







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