The Florida State Flag

 
Many flags have flown over Florida since Juan Ponce de León landed in 1513. Among them have been the flags of five sovereign nations: Spain, France, Great Britain, the United States, and the Confederate States of America. Numerous other unofficial flags also have been flown on the penninsula at one time or another. Only a written description remains of some of these banners.

A joint resolution of the legislature in 1899, approved by state voters in 1900, made our current State Flag the official banner of Florida. The official specifications for the flag can be found in Chapter 15.012 of the Florida Statutes. "The State Flag shall conform with standard commercial sizes and be of the following portions and descriptions: The seal of the state, in diameter one-half the hoist, shall occupy the center of a white ground. Red bars, in width one-fifth the hoist, shall extend from each corner towards the center, to the outer rim of the seal." The Department of State is the custodian of the State Flag.

 

The Florida State Bird - Mockingbird

 

The common Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) is a superb songbird and mimic. Its own song has a pleasant lilt, varied and repetitive. Often it will sing all night long, especially in bright springtime moonlight. All ten species of mockingbirds are virtually alike in form: about 10" in length, with a 15" wingspan, grayish upper portions, white undersides, and white patches on the tail and wings. The female has slightly less whiteness.

The nest, a joint male/female project, is a bulky, open cup of grass, twigs and rootlets carelessly arranged in a dense tree of bush. The 3-6 eggs per nest are a pale blue-greenish with brown spots. This year-round Florida resident is known for its fierce defense of the family nest.

Senate Concurrent Resolution No.3 of the 1927 legislative session designated the Mockingbird as the State Bird. Not only a Florida favorite, it is the State Bird of Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.
 

The Florida State Flower - Orange Blossom

 

The orange blossom was designated State Flower by Concurrent Resolution Nov. 15, 1909 Legislature. It is one of the most fragrant flowers in Florida. Millions of these white flowers perfume the atmosphere throughout central and south Florida during orange blossom time.

 

The Florida State Reptile - Alligator

 

In 1987 the Florida legislature designated the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) as the official state reptile. Long an unofficial symbol of the state, the alligator originally symbolized Florida’s extensive untamed wilderness and swamps. Alligators are found throughout Florida and in parts of other southeastern states. They prefer lakes, swamps, canals, and other wetland habitats. They eat fish, turtles, and a variety of other animals. In late June and early July, female alligators usually lay thirty to fifty eggs in mound-shaped nests made of reeds and other vegetation. Baby alligators hatch after an incubation period of about two months. When hatched, alligators are already fully developed and about eight inches long. Mature alligators usually range from six to twelve feet in length, with females rarely exceeding nine feet. 

Today, the alligator is no longer on the endangered-species list, because the reptile has successfully repopulated itself after having been over-exploited by illegal hide hunters. Alligators are now under controlled management by the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission to preserve the species and the wetland habitats that they and other Florida wildlife inhabit.
 

The Florida State Beverage - Orange Juice

 

Seldom does the mere mention of a beverage bring to mind a state. However, whenever "orange juice" is seen, written, or spoken, the universal connection is Florida. Technically, the state beverage is "The juice obtained from mature oranges of the species Citrus sinesis and hybrids thereof" but the world knows it as just plain orange juice.

During the Second World War, concentrated juice was developed . . . followed by a frozen concentrate that transformed orange juice production into a multi-billion dollar industry. Small wonder that the Florida Legislature of 1967 proclaimed orange juice as the official State Beverage.
 

Florida Link
 

http://www.flausa.com/Southeast/index.html