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Create memories in nature
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The weather may be chilly, but it’s still a great time to get outside and see birds, mammals and a host of other wildlife species in your own neighborhood.

This holiday season, create lifelong memories and establish new family traditions by getting outdoors with your camera. Try capturing photos of yourself and your family and friends exploring nature.

Visit a national wildlife refuge, fish hatchery, or even a stream or wooded area in your neighborhood. Then share the best photos of you and your family enjoying nature with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its "Let’s Go Outside" photo project, which
already includes more
than 4,000 images. Your photos will become part of an online image mosaic compiled with thousands of photos.

Here’s all you have to do:

• Head for the outdoors — your backyard, a local park or a nearby national wildlife refuge. (There’s a national wildlife refuge within an hour’s drive of most major American cities.) And don’t forget your digital camera.

• Photograph a friend or family member enjoying an outdoor activity. Or have someone snap a photo of you.

• Send in your photo, following the instructions posted on the "Let’s Go Outside" Web site: http://yououtdoors.org.

• To learn about outdoor opportunities and activities you can participate in, including the basics of digital nature photography, go to www.fws.gov/letsgooutside/ or www.fws.gov/refuges/SpecialEvents/FWS_SpecialEvents_Search.cfm.

All digital photos uploaded to the photo mosaic will help compose an outdoor image. When viewed from a distance, the photo mosaic appears to be a single image. But closer examination reveals it’s made up of thousands of smaller photos. Visitors to the "Let’s Go Outside" Web site will be able to watch the image mosaic being built and locate their own images by using a unique code number.

The initiative, supported by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners, encourages children, educators and parents to spend time outside connecting with nature and wildlife while spending time with family.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s mission is to work with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. For more information, go to www.fws.gov.

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