The following are the NTA Competition Rules in effect for the 55th Annual NTA Competition.
2026 NTA Competition Rules and Deadlines
It is the responsibility of the competitor to read the competition rules and award criteria requirements.
- We encourage all competitors to pre-register mounts by Monday July 6th to facilitate a faster check-in process at the convention.
- Banquet tickets must be purchased by July 6th
- On-site registration will be available on Thursday July 16th until 5pm for those who did not pre-register or for those who wish to add a mount to their registration.
- All entries brought in on Friday July 17th MUST be pre-registered by July 6th.
Attendance
All competitors must be NTA members in good standing and registered for the convention. Competitors must have their mount registered, groomed, photographed and delivered to the showroom within the posted entry hours. No mount can be removed from the showroom before the conclusion of the awards banquet. Major award winners will also be photographed with their mounts at the conclusion of the banquet on Saturday July 18th.
Mount Entry Times
- Wednesday July 15th 5pm – 7pm
- Thursday July 16th 8am – 5pm
- Friday July 17th 8am – noon MUST BE PRE-REGISTERED
Competition Viewing
- Friday – 3pm – 4:30pm
- Saturday – 11am – 4pm
***competitor voting must be done between 11am – noon
***judges critiques will be from noon – 4pm
- Saturday – competition area will be CLOSED 4pm – 5pm for placement of ribbons
Live Mounting Competition
- Friday 6pm – 9pm during the Friday night social
- Saturday 8am – 9am for final touches before judging
Vendor Hours
- Thursday 8am – 3pm vendor set up, vendor area opens at 3pm
- Friday 10am – 1pm; 3pm – 5pm
- Saturday 8am – noon
Absentee Competitor Entries
A competitor that is not able to attend the convention may still enter a mount in the competition. The competitor must be a NTA member in good standing, pay the convention fee, and all applicable entry fees. The mount may pre-register or registered by the person delivering the mount to the competition on Thursday July 16. It is the competitor’s responsibility to ensure whoever is delivering the mount to the competition has the appropriate registration information and payment if necessary.
Liability
During registration, competitors will acknowledge the releasing of the NTA staff and agents from any liability for mounts entered into the competition. Since accidents are possible, competitors may consider purchasing insurance via their local insurance company if they deem it necessary.
Competition Divisions
- Distinguished Taxidermist – No species categories – plaque award
- North American Champion – Masters – medallion award
- National Champion – Professional – medallion award
- Novice – over 16 years old – ribbon award
- Youth – 16 years old and under – ribbon award
- Collective Artists – No species categories, all go head-to-head – 1st, 2nd, 3rd place plaques
- Sculpture – in either clay or foam – plaque award
- Live Mounting – one to three people per team, all go head to head – 1st, 2nd, 3rd place plaques. Judges will take into consideration the number of competitors on a team, difficulty of specimen, size of specimen and number of specimens in the entry when determining the placings.
North American, National, Novice, and Youth Categories
- Birds – all birds other than waterfowl and turkey
- Waterfowl
- Turkey
- Coldwater Fish – skin mount; Ex. Trout, Salmon, Char
- Warmwater Fish – skin mount; Ex. Panfish, Bass, Pike, saltwater fish
- Reptile – skin mount
- Recreations – Renderings which include no natural parts of the specimen portrayed
- Reproductions – warm/cold, salt/freshwater fish and reptiles
- Small/Medium Mammals – life size, coyote and smaller (larger than 75lbs)
- Large Mammals – life size, larger than a coyote (smaller than 75lbs)
- Small Gameheads – coyote and smaller
- Large Gameheads – larger than a coyote
- Whitetail – closed mouth, exposed lower lip & teeth allowed, no inner mouth detail visible
- Whitetail – open mouth, Inner mouth detail is visible – upper palate, teeth & tongue
- Art – flat art, sculptures, invertebrates, crustaceans, or any other entry not fitting into another category. No Division distinguishment, all pieces go head to head. 1st, 2nd, 3rd place ribbon awarded.
Sculpture Categories
- Shoulder and half body – all species
- Life size – all mammal species
- Other – bird, fish, snakes, ect
Live Mounting Categories
- Birds, Waterfowl, and Turkey
- Fish
- Reptiles and Amphibians
- Lifesize Mammals
- Whitetail and all other Gameheads
Competitor’s Choice Categories, Voted on by all competitors
Trophies sponsored by McKenzie Taxidermy Supply
- Whitetail
- Gamehead, all non-whitetail
- Bird
- Lifesize mammal
- Fish
- Reptile
Challenge of the Art
- Selected by the judges with plaque award.
- One entry fee per base, regardless of how many specimens are on the base. Piece will be judged in its entirety based on composition and visual impact. No scorecards will be provided.
Competitor’s Award –
Trophies sponsored by Matuska Taxidermy Supply Company
Any competitor with four or more entries in the same division shall be automatically entered for the Competitor’s Award, with the four highest scores progressing on.
A competitor who enters four or more pieces in both North American and National divisions must designate which division they choose to compete in or the division with the highest scoring four pieces will progress. Please speak directly with the Competition Chairperson if this applies to you.
Collective Artists
Once a piece has been entered as a Collective Artist entry at any previous show, it must remain in that distinction. Components can not be separated and refurbished as a single competitor entry.
Collective Artist pieces will be scored by each respective judge with the final selection of the division winners being determined by the judge panel.
A previous year’s Live Mounting piece is eligible to enter the Collective Artist division at future NTA competitions if multiple competitors have assisted with the completion of the piece.
One entry fee enters the piece into the Collective Artist division. Each artist’s name must be noted at the time of registration.
All awards whether it be cash, ribbons, or trophy, shall be considered conveyed to the winners when a representative of the team accepts it. Distribution of any awards among the team members is the responsibility of the representative accepting the award. Additional trophies and ribbons may be requested at the cost of the requesting additional competitor, including shipping.
NTA National Medallion Winners
National Division first place medallion recipients automatically advance the competitor to the North American division within that same category in subsequent competitions.
North American medallion winners may return and enter the North American division within any category.
Distinguished Taxidermist Division
This division may only be entered by a competitor whose piece has won Best of Show at any state or regional competition in the last 12 months. All pieces compete head-to-head with no species categories. If the piece is entered into the Distinguished Taxidermist division it can also be entered in either the North American or National divisions.
Judging
Judges will score each entry separately on a NTA approved score sheet and initial the numerical score it was given. All scores will be recorded and electronic record of scores will remain with the NTA Secretary for a minimum of one year.
Distinguished Taxidermist and North American divisions are judged at the same level. While North American division has categories, Distinguished Taxidermist division pieces all go head-to-head against one another, having no categories.
No piece may be entered into both the North American and National divisions.
Half-life size entries will compete in their respective Gamehead division. Small Gameheads are defined as coyote or smaller; large Gameheads are larger than a coyote, including the juvenile of the species. Example – a bear cub will still be considered a large Gamehead.
Multiple mounts on a single base may be additional entries or may be considered as habitat.
Photos and reference materials – Competitors may provide photos to document form alterations and parts that were made by the competitor for the judge’s review and taken into consideration when judging.
Taxidermist of the Year Best of Show
This is the highest award given at the NTA competition. Judge panel will select this piece based on quality of the taxidermy work, degree of difficulty, artistic merit, composition and visual impact. Any entry eligible for Taxidermist of the Year Best of Show must have a minimum score of 90 and be entered into the North American division.
NTA Best of Show Runner Up
Judge panel will select the piece. The entry may be in either the North American or National division.
Mount Mobility and Placement
Mounts may be tabletop, wall mount, or pedestal style pieces. NTA staff highly recommends that all large floor pieces have sturdy roller casters so the piece can be easily moved to, and within, the showroom as needed. Show staff may request a competitor assist with placement of any piece they are not comfortable moving, to minimize risk of damage.
Entries with cases must have removable top and sides for judging.
Electrical outlets or access is not available in the competition area. If you choose to incorporate powered special effects, they must be battery powered. These devices will be turned on when the mount is placed in the competition area and will be left on. If the device needs to be turned off for judging, such as a spinning mount, you must provide instructions for the judge to locate the device.
Entry Restrictions
Protected species need proper permits which will be placed with the entry. In some cases, special permits are also required to cross into the U.S. or to cross state lines. The competitor is responsible for knowing and following all such laws pertaining to protected species.
The NTA reserves the right to refuse any entry that does not comply with the competition rules or is deemed to be inappropriate or detrimental to the image of the taxidermy industry. Any infraction of a competition rule will result in disqualification of the entry and forfeiture of any awards won by that entry. Membership, registration, and entry fees will not be refunded.
Anything judged as “fatal flaw” will be given a scoresheet, but no ribbons or awards will be given. Any mount with offensive odors will be removed from the competition area and not judged.
Any entry may be ineligible if in the opinion of the Competition Chairperson and/or the judge, too many of the judging criteria are hidden from view or are not included in the mount and is not in conjunction with another mount that is ‘judgeable’.
Example – single wood duck head coming out of a hole in a tree
There will be no formal competitor score sheet protests or challenges though the NTA encourages any competitor to bring their questions or concerns directly to the Competition Chairperson, who is responsible for resolving any problems related to the competition and judging.
No mount that has previously been entered in a NTA competition can be entered into a subsequent NTA competition with the exception of the Live Mounting pieces which may be finished and entered as completed pieces by the competitor(s) in their respective category.
There shall not be any competitor identification on any entry or printed materials.
Critiques
Judges will be available on Saturday July 18th to provide competitors with critiques. Sign-up sheets will be available to meet with judges, and the competition area will be open during this time. We ask that competitors are in the competition area prior to their designated critique time and check in with the staff member assisting the judge to make the critique process as efficient as possible.
Conduct
Fairness and integrity in conduct and competition are the cornerstones of the NTA. NTA Board Members may enter mounts into the competition. Any Board Member electing to enter a mount will have convention duties that do not include being in the competition room during judging. Nor will they be addressing any questions arising from the judges or other competitors regarding judging criteria or any other aspect of the competition. All such questions shall be directed to the Competition Chairperson.
We respectfully request the following to preserve the integrity of the competition.
Competitors shall not:
- Travel with an NTA scheduled judge
- Lodge with an NTA scheduled judge
No Judge may enter pieces into the competition except for NTA members volunteering to judge entries and mentor competitors in the Novice and Youth divisions.
By using qualified NTA members to judge and critique the pieces entered by the Novice and Youth competitors, more time will be available to provide detailed critiques for these less experienced competitors. The creation of these two divisions is intended for those that can truly benefit from one-on-one time with some of our most experienced members willing to share their knowledge.
Competitor, Board of Director, or judge may register a note of concern pertaining to their perception of a conflict of interest. The NTA Secretary shall present all comments to the BOD.
Touching or moving of any mount without the express permission of the competitor by anyone other than the NTA staff is expressly forbidden and may be ground for disqualification and removal from the NTA convention.
Any conduct by the competitor that is deemed unsportsmanlike may result in disqualification and forfeiture of any NTA awards. Unruly or disruptive behavior towards judges or show officials will not be tolerated and may result in removal from the competition and/or barred from future competitions.
The Board of Directors and show staff strive to make the 2026 NTA Convention a place where all competitors feel welcome and have a positive convention experience. The NTA is a professional organization that only gets stronger when our members continue to seek education to enhance their skills, share their knowledge and invest their time in the NTA.