The Florida Panther (Felis
concolor coryi) was
designated the official state ANIMAL
in 1982, following a vote among Florida
schoolchildren.
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Orange
Juice was designated the official state BEVERAGE
in 1967. The growing of oranges is a major part
of Florida's economy, especially in the central
portion of the state. |
The Common
Mockingbird (Mimus
polyglottos) was
designated the official state BIRD
in 1927.
|
 The Zebra Longwing (Heliconius
charitonius) was
designated as the official state BUTTERFLY
in 1996.
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The
current design of the official state FLAG
was adopted in 1900. It consists of two diagonal
red bars, in the form of a St. Andrew's Cross, on
a white field, with the state seal in the center.
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The Orange
Blossom (Citrus sinensis)
was designated the official state FLOWER
in 1909, in recognition of the orange as
an important Florida crop.
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The Florida
Largemouth Bass (Micropterus
salmoides floridanus) was
designated the official state FRESHWATER
FISH in 1975.
|
 In
recognition of the fact that the Apollo 11
mission. which landed the first men on the Moon.
was launched from Florida, as were all other U.S.
manned missions, the Florida Legislature named Moonstone
as the official state GEM in
1970. Ironically, the moonstone is not found
naturally in Florida, or on the Moon for that
matter.
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The Manatee
(Trichechus manatus)
was designated the official state MARINE
MAMMAL in 1975.
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"In
God We Trust" was designated the
official state MOTTO in 1868. |
Cross
and Sword, which dramatizes the
story of Spanish colonization of the first
permanent European settlement in what is now the
United States, Saint Augustine, was designated
the official state PLAY in 1973.
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The American Alligator
(Alligator mississippiensis)
was designated the official state REPTILE
in 1987.
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The Sailfish
(Istiophorus platypterus)
was designated the official state SALTWATER
FISH in 1975.
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When
the Florida Legislature of 1975 adopted the Porpoise
as the official state SALTWATER MAMMAL it
failed to specify a specific species, simply
designating the "porpoise, also commonly
known as the dolphin."
|
 The
current design of the Great SEAL
of the State of Florida was adopted in 1985.
Among the prominent features of the design are a
Seminole woman, a steamboat, and a sabal palm.
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The Horse
Conch (Pleuroploca gigantea)
was designated the official state SHELL
in 1969.
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| Myakka
Fine Sand was designated the official
state SOIL in 1989. Unique to
Florida, Myakka soil is also the most extensive
soil in the state. |
The
Swanee River (Old Folks at Home),
written by Stephen C. Foster in 1851, was
designated the official state SONG
in 1935. Although the Suwannee River does indeed
flow through Florida (separating the panhandle
from the rest of the state), Foster never visited
the state. It is believed that he chose the term
"Swanee" because its two-syllable
cadence fit nicely into the music he had
composed. |
Agatized
Coral was designated the official state STONE
in 1979.
|
 The Sabal
Palm (Sabal palmetto)
was designated the official state TREE
in 1953. It officially replaced the cocoa palm on
the state seal in 1970.
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The Coreopsis
was designated the official state WILDFLOWER
in 1991, after the colorful flowers were used
extensively in roadside plantings and highway
beautification programs.
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