The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has announced the winners of the 2025 Texas division of Wildlife Forever’s Fish Art Contest, celebrating the artistic talent and conservation awareness of young Texans across the state.
The contest, hosted by the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) in Athens, received 485 entries from K-12 students. Judges selected 12 standout pieces to appear in the 2026 Texas Fish Art Calendar and to be showcased in a public exhibit at TFFC, which reopens July 1 after renovations.
The 2025 award went to Alyssa Trevino of Pharr, whose artwork was selected from entries statewide and will be spotlighted at the TFFC exhibit.
Austin Category Winners
Four age divisions were judged, and winners were selected for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in each:
Grades K–3
1st place: Jessica Ding, Austin
2nd place: Candice Chen, Austin
Grades 4–6
3rd place: Alice Xie, Austin
Grades 7–9
1st place: Rachel Shen, Austin
2nd place: Ziheng Wang, Austin
New Honors and Special Awards
Two new awards were introduced in the 2025 contest.
The Special Species Award highlighted the Guadalupe bass, Texas’ official state fish. This year’s award honored Shirley Watson and her third-grade class at Decatur Elementary, who successfully petitioned the state in 1989 to adopt the species as Texas’ state fish.
The Mighty Minnow Award, introduced to celebrate kindergarten creativity in the K-3 category, went to Rishan Patri of Beaumont. The award recognizes age-appropriate artistic development and will also be highlighted in the TFFC showcase.
