Things We Should Know About Texas

While watching “Jeopardy!” recently, I got interested in a category about state mottos. While I don’t know very many other states’ trivia answers, I thought I knew the ones for Texas.

Wrong! And that got me logging onto my computer, researching things about Texas. For instance, the state bird, flower, sport and much more.  And that leads us to today’s topic, a quiz about Texas symbols, mottoes and animals, just to mention a few. See how well you know our state. Warning: some answers are easy, but others may not be what you thought they were. Don’t get tripped up too easily. Answers are at the end of the column. ?

1. Name the state bird.
2. What is the state amphibian?
3. What is our state crustacean?
4. What is the official food dish of Texas?
5. Name the state dog breed. (I thought I’d get this one. No such luck!)
6. What is our state flower?
7. We have a state flying mammal. Name it.
8. Name the state’s official footwear.
9. Name the state horse of Texas.
10. What is our official state motto?
11. What is our state’s nickname?
12. We have a state reptile. Name it.
13. We also have a state ship. What is it called?
14. Texas has an official state snack. What is it?
15. What is our state insect?
16. Identify the state sport of Texas. (Watch out on this one!)
17. Name the state tree of Texas.
18. What is the state song?
19. Texas has a state pie. What kind is it? (This is really easy.)
20. What is our state hat?

The answers (and a few comments):

1. The state bird is the mockingbird. If you said pelican, you’re thinking of the Texas Gulf Coast.
2. The Texas Toad is our state amphibian.
3. The state crustacean is the Texas Gulf Shrimp.
   The best shrimp there is.
4. The official food dish of Texas is chili.
   Not fried shrimp, BBQ or steak!
5. The Blue Lacy is the state dog breed.
   Never heard of it but that’s what it said.
6. Our state flower? The bluebonnet.
   What else could it be?
7. The state flying mammal is the Mexican free-tailed bat.
8. The official footwear of Texas could only be the cowboy boot.
9. The official horse of Texas is the American Quarter Horse.
10. The official motto is “Friendship.”
    (And our signs say “Don’t Mess With Texas!”)
11. We are officially “The Lone Star State.”
12. The Texas Horned Lizard is the official state reptile. It’s not an amphibian like the toad.
13. We are proud of our state ship, The USS Texas.
14. Our official snack?  What else could it be but tortilla chips and salsa?
15. The Monarch Butterfly is the state insect. I guessed the mosquito. Whatever.
16. If you guessed football, you’re wrong. It’s RODEO! Yeeeeehawwww!
17. The official state tree is the pecan tree.
18. Texas’ official song is “Texas, My Texas.”
19. Our official pie is pecan pie, made from the nuts on our state tree.
20. Our state hat could only be one thing. It’s the cowboy hat. Nothing else would make sense.