# Weird state symbols **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 2, 2001, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528 "2001-03-02T17:58:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/1 "2001-03-02T17:58:40Z")
I got curious about this the other day, when Eve posted the thread about Utah and jello. OK, so I’m a little slow sometimes. I finally looked up the official list of Texas symbols. [here](http://www.governor.state.tx.us/Texas/texas_symbols_list.html) and found, among other things: Shell: Lightning Whelk Dinosaur: Brachiosaur Sauropod, Pleurocoelus Grass: Sideoats Grama Vegetable: Sweet Texas Onion So, what weird symbols does your state have? And if you don’t live in the U.S. does your country have these? ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/2 "2001-03-02T18:23:15Z")
Oh the timing! I was just looking up the State Saltwater Fish. (And I know I posted these somewhere on the boards) Florida: Animal: Florida Panther Marine Mammal: West Indian Manatee (gues we forgot the water animals when we named the panther) Saltwater Mammal: Bottlenosed Dolphin (except that manatees live in saltwater, also - wtf?) Freshwater Fish: Florida largemouth bass Saltwater Fish: Atlantic sailfish Bird: Mockingbird (proposed but never actually ratified - still trying for the Scrub-Jay [actually endemic to Florida]) Tree: Sabal palm Flower: Orange blossom Beverage: Orange juice (duh!) Day: April 2 (except the state was admitted on March 3, 1845) Shell: Horse conch Gem: Moonstone Gem: Agatized coral (yup, two state gems) and yes, we have an offical… Soil: Myakka fine sand ---
**Author:** ![Gravity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gravity/32/14322_2.png) [@Gravity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gravity)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/3 "2001-03-02T18:45:55Z")
I thought that we were a pretty simple, straightforward state: State Motto: Freedom and Unity Makes sense, right? State Song: Hail, Vermont written by Josephine Hovey Perry Well, it’s an OK song, I suppose. State Flower: Red Clover They’re all over the place. State Animal: the Morgan Horse So are they. State Tree: Sugar Maple Gotta make syrup from something, and the Morgan Horses object… State Bird: Hermit Thrush again, all over the place. State Rocks: granite, marble, and slate Yep, all over. State Mineral: talc You can find it on the ground, pretty much anywhere you look. Not as common as the granite or slate, but up there. State Gem: grossular garnet This is very common, especially in the St. Johnsbury area. You can just pick up rocks with garnet in them from the roadsides. State Fossil: [Charlotte, the fossil whale](http://www.uvm.edu/whale/whalehome.html) Ok…I admit that that one’s a little strange… ---
**Author:** ![Falcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/49beb7/32.png) [@Falcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falcon)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/4 "2001-03-02T19:26:21Z")
We have PLENTY of [state symbols](http://www.mdarchives.state.md.us/msa/mdmanual/01glance/html/symbols/00list.html) in Maryland… State Bird: Baltimore Oriole. (Makes sense, although I’ve never SEEN one…) State Boat: The Skipjack (Ooooookay…) State Crustacean: The Blue Crab (Makes PLENTY of sense to me. Dammit, now I want some crabcakes…) State Dinosaur: Astrodon johnstoni (Supposedly lived in Maryland during the early Cretaceous period.) State Dog: Chesapeake Bay Retriever (Again, makes sense…was named after the bay in the FIRST place.) State Drink: Milk (Ummmm…ok. Shouldn’t milk be like, WISCONSIN’S state drink??? I think Maryland’s should be Natty Bo, myself.) State Fish: Rockfish (No comment. I know we have a lot of 'em around, so makes sense…) State Flower: Black Eyed Susan (Plenty of 'em all over the highways, so makes sense.) State Folk Dance: Square Dance (We have a STATE FOLK DANCE???) State Fossil Shell: Ecphora gardnerae gardnerae (Wilson) (No comment. What can I even SAY?) State Insect: Baltimore Checkerspot Butterfly (Here, the best comment is from the website: “Although the law that made it the State Insect did not give a reason for the designation, certainly the Butterfly’s name endears it to Marylanders.” :rolleyes: State Reptile: Diamondback Terrapin (Mascot of the University of Maryland, so makes sense. GO TERPS!) State Song: “Maryland, My Maryland” (Okay. Good enough song, I suppose…couldn’t sing it for you if I wanted to, tho.) State Tree: White Oak (Okay. I have NO idea why this is our state tree. Plenty of 'em around…) _And my PERSONAL favorite for weirdest state symbol:_ State Sport: Jousting (The website also notes that Maryland was the first state with a state sport. With a sport like jousting, I would expect so!!) ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/5 "2001-03-02T19:54:10Z")
Our state song is “Texas, Our Texas”. Wait! I thought it was “Yellow Rose of Texas”! I guess the legislature didn’t want to recognize a song about a prostitute of mixed ethnic heritage. The problem is, I’ve never heard our state song. When you realize how much Texans are into Texiana, and that I grew up here, that’s a little odd. Just to show our obsession with bluebonnets(our state flower), we have the official: Bluebonnet City: Ennis Bluebonnet Festival: Chappel Hill Bluebonnet Festival Bluebonnet Trail: Ennis Don’t you know some politician got elected on that platform? Vote for me and Ennis will be the Bluebonnet city of Texas! And hey! Falcon, square dance can’t be your official folk dance, it’s ours. :eek: Oh wait, just how many folk dances are there? And then we have the official pepper (jalepeno) and _native_ pepper (Chiltepin) ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-state-symbols/56528/6 "2001-03-02T20:04:27Z")
Animal: Grizzly bear Flower: Bitterroot Fish: Cutthroat trout Fossil: Duck-bill dinosaur (Maiasaura peeblesorum) Gem: Sapphire Grass: Bluebunch wheatgrass Tree: Ponderosa pine Song: Everybody! . . . . _Montana, Montana, glory of the West! Of all the states from coast to coast you’re easily the best. Montana, Montana, where skies are always blue – M-O-N-T-A-N-Aayyyy! Montana, we love you!_ 🙂