The stamp featuring the freshwater pearl mussel has a face value of € 1.00, which corresponds to the postage of letter-post items in the weight class up to 20 grams within Latvia, while the face value of the stamp depicting the black stork is € 1.27, covering the postage of letter-post items in the weight class from 21 to 100 grams within Latvia. The print run of each individual stamp is 50,000 copies.
The release of the stamps is accompanied by the issue of a special cover with a print run of 1,000 copies. The stamp and the cover have been designed by the artist Ģirts Grīva.
The freshwater pearl mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) is a very rare and endangered mussel in the whole of Europe that inhabits only clean rivers. The survival of the species is threatened by river pollution and disruption of streams. In Latvia the freshwater pearl mussel has survived in the places where there are many forests in the area of the river basin.
The black stork (Ciconia nigra) is one of the two stork species found in Latvia, which inhabits quiet forests and nests in large, old trees. The number of nesting pairs in Latvia has dropped by half since the end of the 20th century, and the reasons for this drop are over-intensive forestry activities and the shortage of stork food sources – fish and frogs – during the nesting season.
“This time through the stamps in the joint Europa series we highlight the endangered wildlife species in Latvia in our philatelic releases. This is a way how we draw attention to a major problem about which we have the opportunity to remind the world via postal items,” Mārcis Vilcāns, Chairman of the Board of Latvijas Pasts, emphasises.
Ģirts Strazdiņš, CEO of the Latvian Fund for Nature, points out: “Both species selected for the stamps are related to this year’s habitat of the Latvian Fund for Nature: river streams. The black stork forages in the streams, while the freshwater pearl mussel uses them as a habitat: the streams play a very important role in the life of both species. This shows the significance of caring for nature as a whole and protecting habitats, as they form a common network of wildlife with opportunities for the sustainable existence of diverse species and natural values.”
The originator of the Europa series stamps is PostEurop Association, and the stamps of this series with a single logo and a common theme for entire Europe have been issued since 1994. In previous years the themes of the Europa stamps were dedicated to ornithology, literature, natural attractions, travel, postal transport, old toys, eco-friendly lifestyle, castles and railway, as well as ancient postal routes.
