State Bird Illustration Series Large Birds


I wanted to save a few of the larger birds for their own post.  
My favorite is the Willow Ptarmigan.  They change their feathers with the season becoming all white in the winter.  They have  feathered feet 
to allow them to walk easily over fresh snow drifts. 
A few things I found interesting about Alaska, "The Last Frontier" state: 
It is the largest state in the union, twice the size of Texas, 
and only 55 miles east of Russia. 
Alaska has 3 million lakes, 29 volcanoes, 100,000 glaciers, and 33,000 miles of coastline.
What a place.  It was my dad's favorite place he visited and I hope to visit someday, too.  


From cold Alaska to balmy Hawaii is the Nene also called "Hawaiian Goose" 
Hawaii is the only state with the land area gradually increasing
 and this is from volcanic eruptions.  
It is the southernmost state in the US. 
The Big Island of Hawaii is known for having the largest and most active volcano in the world (Kilauea), and for harvesting the most macadamia nuts and orchids.


Minnesota "The land of 10,000 Lakes".  
Being from Nevada I'm impressed with the bodies of water in the other states.
The Common Loon is the state bird and in summer they have the black and white feathers.  In winter they become more grey.  The babies like to ride on mom's back.
Since the residents enjoy lots of lakes, Minnesota has one recreational boat per every six people, more than any other state.  (awesomeamerica.com) 
Impressive.


South Dakota "Coyote State" chose the decorated 
Ring-Necked Pheasant as their state bird. 
During pheasant hunting season where I grew up in Idaho,
 I loved to collect and sort the colorful feathers after the birds were plucked.  
Along with being known for Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota is known for
Black Hills Gold, Wild Bill Hickok in Deadwood, and the
Mashed Potato Wresting Contest in Clark.  Sound fun?    


The State Bird of Utah is the Seagull.  They chose this bird because large flocks of gulls saved them by eating the crickets that were destroying their crops.  
A couple of fun things I found about Utah are 
The Great Salt Lake is 3-5 times saltier than the ocean.   
Utah is the Jello Capital of the world.  More is eaten there than anywhere in the world.
I wonder what their favorite flavors are.
Much of this info was found on awesomeamerica.com a fun site. 


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