All 4-H members are limited to one (1) exhibit per entry number and four (4) exhibits per project.
GENERAL RULES:
- No Firearms, Items with a Blade (broad heads, knives, saws, etc.) or related items of any other kind, may be exhibited. This applies to actual items, replicated items, and item parts. Photos are a suitable substitution for actual items.
- Show What You Did & Learned: - All 4-H members must show evidence of their personal field experiences, study or observations that relate to their exhibit. This helps judges understand what the 4-H member did and learned in the process that led to the exhibit.
- Proper Credit: - Show proper credit by listing the sources of plans or other supporting information used in exhibits.
- Exhibitor Information: - The 4-H member's name, county, age must be on the back or bottom of all displays.
- Wildlife & Wildlife Laws: - "Animal" or "wildlife" in the following classes includes wild fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, or mammals. Domestic animals (i.e. domestic livestock or house pets) and insect exhibits are not appropriate for this area. 4-H members must comply with current state and federal laws. It is illegal to possess threatened, endangered, or protected wildlife, or the feathers, nests, or eggs of non-game birds. These items cannot be part of any exhibit. Game birds and game animals taken legally during an open season may be used.
- Project Materials: - Related project booklets include Exploring Your Environment Series, 4-H Shooting Sports, Amphibians, Bird Behavior (EC59381), Fishing for Adventure Project Manuals, Wildlife Conservation (4H125), Geology, and Outdoor Adventure. Other resources include: Outdoor Skills: Learning Science in the Outdoors series (Science Signature Outcome Program) outdoornebraska.gov/afterschool and www.whep.org.
- Exhibit Size Guidelines
- Board and Poster Exhibits: Mount all board exhibits on ¼ inch plywood, Masonite, or similar panel no larger 24 inches high x 24 inches wide. Poster exhibits should be on regular poster sheets, no larger than standard size (22 inches x 28 inches) but half size, 22 inches x 14 inches, is recommended.
- All Other Exhibits: Exhibits other than poster/display board should not exceed 48 inches x 48 inches and be able to be moved by two people. Large exhibits (larger than listed above) must be suited and prepared for outdoor exhibition at the Nebraska State Fair. If large exhibits are not suited for outdoor exhibition, youth have the option to create a poster or another suitable substitute for the exhibit, instead of exhibiting the project itself.
Follow Nebraska Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
All static exhibits must have received a purple ribbon at the county fair to advance to the State Fair.
Score sheets and additional resources can be found at https://go.unl.edu/ne4hconservation-wildlife-shooting. An explanation of projects and curriculum resources can be found at https://4h.unl.edu/resources/projects/.
WILDLIFE AND HOW THEY LIVE, CLASSES
PREMIUMS: Purple, $4.00; Blue, $3.00; Red, $2.00; White, $1.00
Classes 1-4 are board or poster exhibits. Display may show any aspect of wildlife, wildlife habitat, or related conservation. No domestic livestock, pet, or insects allowed. For more ideas, refer to project booklets. Please refer to General Rules for more information.
D340001 Mammal Display (Scoresheet SF157A) – Choose one mammal from the wild and share on your display about the mammal. Examples include life history, behavior, habitat, or other interesting facts.
D340002 Bird Display (Scoresheet SF157A) – Choose one bird from the wild and share on your display about the bird. Examples include life history, behavior, habitat, or other interesting facts.
D340003 Fish Display (Scoresheet SF157A) – Choose one fish from the wild and share on your display about the fish. Examples include life history, behavior, habitat, or other interesting facts.
D340004 Reptile or Amphibian Display (Scoresheet SF157A) – Choose one reptile or amphibian and share on your display about the reptile or amphibian. Examples include life history, behavior, habitat, or other interesting facts.
D340005 Wildlife Connections (board or poster exhibit) (Scoresheet SF157A) - The purpose of this display is to show interconnections and related aspects among animals, plants, and other habitat components. All displays should show two or more interactions (connections) that occur between/among animals or between animals and their habitat. Displays might show how animals interact with other animals, with people, or with their habitat. Examples:
1) Food chain display. Use pictures, drawings, or other items to illustrate the source of food energy and where it goes - who eats whom or what. Use arrows to show the direction of the energy (food) flow.
2) Show the role of predators, scavengers, insect eaters, or others in nature.
3) Show how wildlife numbers (populations) change through the year.
4) Show predation, competition, or other behavioral interactions of wildlife.
5) Choose one kind of wildlife and make observations through a season or year, keep notes of interactions, then make a display of what you saw.
D340006 Wildlife Tracks (board or diorama-type box exhibit) (Scoresheet SF158A) - Make a display of animal tracks using casting plaster. There are three options. For all options, include a brief description of your experiences in making the tracks so the judges understand better what you did and learned. Positive casts (impressions as they would be in nature) are preferred but not required.
● Option 1 should show plaster tracks of five or more kinds of wildlife along with a picture or illustration of each kind of animal. OR
● Option 2 should show two or more plaster tracks of one specific kind of wildlife and should include a picture or illustration of the animal, what the animal may eat, and what may eat the animal. OR
● Option 3 should show two tracks and include the animal’s habitat needs including preferred food, shelter, water, and space in addition to picture or illustration of the animal.
D340007 Wildlife Knowledge Check (Scoresheet SF157A) - Use electrical circuits, pictures, or other methods of teaching wildlife identification or other wildlife conservation or shooting sports related knowledge. Plan size and shape to fit transportation and display; maximum size 24 inches x 24 inches.
D340008 Wildlife Diorama (Scoresheet SF160A) - Exhibit must be no larger than 24 inches by 24 inches. The exhibit might show a grassland, prairie, agricultural, woodland, riparian (stream or river corridor), wetland, and/or other area with wildlife habitat. Example: show an area interspersed with several habitats such as windbreaks, farm fields, woods, waste areas, ditches, and pastures for edge-adapted species such as White-tailed deer, Northern Bobwhite, Mourning Doves, Cottontail Rabbits, fox, squirrels, Northern Cardinals, or Bluejays. Label the habitats displayed and show at least five kinds of wildlife in their proper habitats. Remember to include supporting information about the wildlife and habitat that is on display.
D340009 Wildlife Essay (Scoresheet SF161A) - Learn how to share educational information by writing. Choose a conservation or wildlife topic that interests you and write an essay about it. For example, write about a particular species of wildlife that you have observed or about the values of wildlife. You might write about wildlife on a farm, in town, in a backyard, at a backyard feeder, or at other places. You might write about ethics, proper behavior in the outdoor, hunting, or fishing. The essay is between 100 and 1000 words long and typed, double spaced on 8.5 inch x 11 inch paper. You might use books, magazines, or personal interviews as resources, but you must give credit to all sources by listing them.
D340010 Wildlife Values Scrapbook (Scoresheet SF162A) - Make a scrapbook about the value of wildlife. Value could include aesthetic, scientific, commercial, game, genetic, and/or ecological topics.
D340011 Wildlife Arts (Scoresheet SF163A) - The purpose of this class is to allow artistic exhibits that contain educational information about conservation and wildlife. Examples might include paintings, photographs, wood carvings, painted duck decoys, or songs or poems written by the 4-H member. Entries must be appropriate for fair display and no larger than 24 inches x 24 inches. For example, paintings or photographs should be displayed in notebook format or mounted on a sturdy display panel. All entries must include a title and brief explanation of the purpose or message (what is the exhibit meant to show).
D340901 County Only Exhibit