Lawmakers are trying again to designate the flamingo as the official state bird and the Florida scrub jay as the state song bird. While the bill's fate is uncertain in the Senate, it breezed through the full House this week.
"The mockingbird has been around for 97 years. I saw one in Pennsylvania. I thought it was lost."
The mockingbird has been Florida's state bird for nearly a century. Rep. Jim Mooney, R-Islamorada, thinks it's the flamingo's turn.
"This is an environmental bill for me. I live in one of the most pristine places in the state of Florida in the Florida Keys, and they (flamingos) are there. They are there by the hundreds now," Mooney said during discussion of the bill on the House floor. "The scrub jays from Okeechobee north, they are the coolest little birds, and the more I learned about them, the cooler they became. They come back 5 years later and take care of their little brothers and sisters. That in and of itself is amazing."
The discussion was also rife with puns.
"Rep. Mooney, I know you've been wading a long time for this bill, and I know it's gonna be successful as everyone has been flocking around your office to support this," joked Rep. Alex Rizo, R-Hialeah, who then offered his congratulations.
Flamingos have had a rough go of it. Many were slaughtered, and the species nearly became extinct in the early 1900s. But a growing number has been spotted in Florida in recent decades, and a scientist at Florida International University says coastal and Everglades restoration are leading more flamingos to take up permanent residence here.
Plus, hundreds of them were blown into the sunshine state from areas well to our west and south, like Cuba and Mexico, during recent hurricane seasons. Rep. Linda Chaney, R-St. Petersburg, offered an example from Hurricane Idalia in 2023.
"Peaches, the flamingo, was blown to my district and rescued by my former aide Tristan," Chaney said. "Peaches' little nose was just barely sticking above the water and Tristan saw her and scooped her out of the water. She's been rehabilitated."
Supporters say the hardy flamingo is worthy of the state bird title, and they've been trying to make this change for five years. Some lawmakers even dressed in pink for the bill's passage, like Rep. Lindsay Cross, D-St. Petersburg.
"We are seeing a comeback demonstrating the importance of our state and federal investments in showing that they are making a difference," Cross said. "For me, I'm even more proud to designate the Florida scrub jay as our state song bird. This curious and charismatic bird is only found in Florida. Like many birds and wildlife, it's population has declined due to habitat loss and fragmentation. But recognizing this bird can symbolize a commitment to save its species and its home like we do for the things we love."
Rep. Chip LaMarca, R-Lighthouse Point, says Florida shouldn't share its state bird with four other southern states, as we do now with the mockingbird.
"So let's close this chapter of legislative birdwatching," said LaMarca, a co-sponsor of the bird bill. "Florida won't just be the sunshine state. It'll be the fantastic flamingo state, and if that doesn't make the mockingbird rethink its life choices, at least the flamingo will look fabulous doing it. Let's make flamingos great again."
The House vote was 112 …. to 1.
A round of boos went up for Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, the single no vote. He has said he wants the pelican as the state bird.
The bill now awaits action in the Florida Senate.
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