State Birds of the United States: All 50 States Listed

All 50 state birds

Years are those usually given for adoption; a few states first chose their bird by a school vote or a governor’s proclamation and passed a law later.

The District of Columbia chose the wood thrush in 1938. Among the territories, Guam’s bird is the Guam rail and the US Virgin Islands’ is the bananaquit.

Why is the northern cardinal the most popular state bird?

The northern cardinal is the state bird of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia. Kentucky chose it in 1926, making it the first official state bird of all. The cardinal’s popularity is easy to explain: the bright red male with his pointed crest is one of the most recognizable birds in North America, and both sexes sing.

Cardinals also do not migrate. They stay in the same area all year, so people see them at bird feeders and in gardens even in midwinter, when a red bird against snow is hard to miss. Over the past century the cardinal has spread north into New England and southern Canada, helped by suburban gardens and backyard feeding.

Western meadowlark: the voice of the prairies

The western meadowlark is the state bird of Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon and Wyoming, all states with wide grasslands and farmland. Its bright yellow breast with a black V and its rich, flute-like song make it a symbol of the open prairie. Despite its name, it is not a true lark but a member of the New World blackbird family.

Oregon’s case is unusual. The governor proclaimed the meadowlark the state bird in 1927, but the legislature never made it official. In 2017 lawmakers named it the official state songbird and the osprey the state raptor.

Northern mockingbird: the South’s songbird

The northern mockingbird is the state bird of Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. It is famous for copying the songs and calls of other birds, such as cardinals, Carolina wrens and tufted titmice, and sometimes mechanical sounds, and males keep adding new sounds to their repertoire throughout their lives. Unmated males often sing late into the night in spring.

Florida lawmakers have debated replacing the mockingbird several times, with suggestions including the osprey and the Florida scrub-jay, but it has kept its title since 1927.

Other birds shared by several states

Several other species represent more than one state:

• American robin: Connecticut, Michigan and Wisconsin. Its return in early spring makes it a traditional sign of the end of winter in the North.
• American goldfinch: Iowa and New Jersey (as the eastern goldfinch) and Washington (as the willow goldfinch, a western subspecies). The male turns bright yellow in summer.
• Eastern bluebird: Missouri and New York.
• Mountain bluebird: Idaho and Nevada, which share the sky-blue bird of western open country.
• Black-capped chickadee: Maine and Massachusetts. Maine’s law simply says “chickadee,” but the black-capped chickadee is the species meant.

How and when did states choose their birds?

The idea of state birds took off in the 1920s, when the General Federation of Women’s Clubs encouraged every state to choose one. After Kentucky’s 1926 choice, Alabama, Florida, Maine, Missouri, Oregon, Texas and Wyoming followed in 1927. Many states let schoolchildren vote, which explains why familiar backyard birds won so often.

Most states had picked a bird by the 1950s. Alaska and Hawaii chose theirs in 1955 and 1957, before they became states in 1959. New York was the last state to make its choice official, adopting the eastern bluebird in 1970.

Unusual state birds

Some states chose birds that tell a story about local history or wildlife:

• Hawaii, nene: this goose lives only in the Hawaiian Islands and descends from Canada goose ancestors that arrived about 500,000 years ago. Hunting and introduced predators cut the population to about 30 birds by 1952. Captive breeding, including at Slimbridge in England, brought it back to about 3,800 birds by 2022, and it is now listed as Near Threatened.
• Louisiana, brown pelican: a pelican has appeared on the state flag since 1912, and Louisiana is nicknamed the Pelican State. Pesticides such as DDT drove brown pelicans close to disappearing from parts of the Gulf Coast in the mid-20th century; after DDT was banned, they recovered and were removed from the federal endangered species list in 2009.
• Utah, California gull: according to a story later told by Mormon pioneers, gulls saved their crops in 1848 by eating swarms of insects now called Mormon crickets. The gull became the state bird in 1955.
• Delaware and Rhode Island, chickens: Delaware’s Blue Hen comes from a Revolutionary War legend in which a company of Delaware soldiers was nicknamed the “Blue Hen’s Chickens.” The Rhode Island Red is a famous breed developed in Rhode Island and Massachusetts in the 19th century.
• New Mexico, greater roadrunner: this ground-running member of the cuckoo family can reach about 32 km/h (20 mph). Learn more about the greater roadrunner.
• Minnesota, common loon: the loon’s haunting calls echo across the state’s many northern lakes.
• Alaska, willow ptarmigan: a grouse that turns white in winter for camouflage in snow.
• South Dakota, ring-necked pheasant: a bird native to Asia that was introduced to North America.