~The Natural State~........OHIO (snake alert)

[olena]

State Tree

Yellow Buckeye
Aesculus flava (Aesculus octandra)


Description
Tree with rounded crown and upright clusters of showy yellow flowers.
Height: 70-90' (21-27 m).
Diameter: 2-3' (0.6-0.9 m).
Leaves: opposite; palmately compound; with slender leafstalks 3 1/2-7" (9-18 cm) long. 5-7 leaflets 4-8" (10-20 cm) long, 1 1/2-3" (4-7.5 cm) wide; elliptical to obovate; evenly saw-toothed; short-stalked. Dark green and usually hairless above, yellow-green and often hairy beneath.
Bark: brown to gray; thin, fissured into large scaly plates.
Twigs: light brown; stout, often hairy.
Flowers: 1 1/4" (3 cm) long; with 4 very unequal yellow petals and 7-8 shorter stamens; in upright branched terminal clusters 4-6" (10-15 cm) long; in spring.
Fruit: 2-3" (5-7.5 cm) in diameter; a pale brown, smooth or slightly pitted capsule, splitting on 2-3 lines; 1-3 large shiny brown poisonous seeds; maturing in early autumn.
Habitat
Rich, moist, deep soils from river bottoms to deep mountain valleys or slopes; in mixed forests.
Range
Sw. Pennsylvania south to n. Alabama and n. Georgia and north to extreme s. Illinois; at 500-6300' (152-1920 m).
Discussion
The largest of the buckeyes, it is abundant in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Native Americans made a nutritious food from the seeds, after removing the toxic element by roasting and soaking them.

 

[olena]

State Bird

Northern Cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
Red Cardinal

Description 8-9" (20-23 cm). Male bright red with crest, black face, stout red bill. Female buff-brown tinged with red on crest, wings, and tail.
Voice Rich what-cheer, cheer, cheer; purty-purty-purty-purty or sweet-sweet-sweet-sweet. Also a metallic chip.
Habitat Woodland edges, thickets, brushy swamps, and gardens.
Nesting 3 or 4 pale green eggs, spotted with red-brown, in a deep cup of twigs, leaves, and plant fibers concealed in a thicket.
Range Resident in eastern United States and southern Canada (locally) south to Gulf Coast, and from southern California, Arizona, and southern Texas southward.
Discussion This species, named after the red robes worn by Roman Catholic cardinals, has extended its range northward into southern Canada in recent decades. Cardinals are aggressive birds that occupy territories year-round. Both sexes are accomplished songsters and may be heard at any time of year, rather than just in the spring when most other birds are singing. Seeds form a main part of the diet, although insects are eaten in the breeding season. These birds often come to feeders in winter.

 

[olena]

State Floral Emblem

Scarlet Carnation

The red carnation was adopted as Ohio's state flower in 1904 in memory of President William McKinley, who always wore a red carnation in his lapel.
Native to Eurasia, first being mentioned in use in garlands by classical Greeks and Romans. The flower was named for the Greek dios refering to the god Zeus, and anthos meaning flower, refering to the "flower of the gods". Originally beginning on Long Island in this country in 1852 with imported French carnations, the industry was centered in the Northeast until the middle of the 20th century.
Dr. Levi L. Lamborn was one of the prominent residents of Alliance. One day he was eager to reveal the first carnation to bloom in America to his close friend and political opponent, William McKinley. Being an amateur horticulturist, and also a physician and politician, Dr. Lamborn had successfully propagated one of the six carnation seedlings he had imported from France. He was very excited and proud of this beautiful scarlet carnation and later aptly named it the "Lamborn Red" carnation.

On noting how impressed William McKinley was with this scarlet flower, it is reported that Dr. Lamborn removed the fragrant blossom from the its stem and placed it in his friend's lapel. From that day forward, McKinley was a devoted enthusiast of carnations. When William McKinley became the twenty-fifth President of the United States on November 3, 1896, he proudly wore a "Lamborn Red" carnation in his lapel.

In September of 1901 while attending the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, President McKinley was again wearing his favorite scarlet carnation in his lapel. It was there that he would give a shy young girl his very last "Lamborn Red" boutonniere. For as history records, it was also there just seconds later that President William McKinley was shot by an assassin's bullet and later died.

It wasn't until after President McKinley's death that the Ohio General Assembly passed a joint resolution on February 3, 1904, naming the scarlet carnation the official Ohio floral emblem. Fifty-five years later, on April 8, 1959, the Ohio Legislature named Alliance, Ohio the "Carnation City, for truly it is the home of Ohio's State flower.
Flowers: Generally terminal to 2-3" across, double, most colors or where colors don't exist (green, blue, black) white flowers are dyed often to create bicolors (tinted) with different colored petal edges; most popular are red, pink, white; strongly fragrant

Harvest: When still tight or barely open, life is related to sugar (carbohydrate) content which is highest in midafternoon--best time to harvest; sensitive to ethylene which causes "sleepiness"--failure to open-- so STS helps; can be stored dry for several weeks at 31ºF in bud stage

Foliage: Linear 4-6", narrow, green to glaucous blue with waxy covering

Growth habit: Perennial, up to 2 feet tall depending on the strain
Uses: Probably the most popular cut flower.

Propagation: Propagation is by cuttings or seed. The seed germinates in 2 to 3 weeks at 65 to 75 degrees. Carnations are not fully hardy in northern climates and so are sometimes treated as annuals

Cultivars: Many hundreds are available. Popular standard series include the Sims and Sidney Littlefields. Considered by many the finest ever was the original 'William Sim' named after the Maine breeder in 1938.

 

[olena]

State Insect

Convergent Lady Beetle
Hippodamia convergens


Description 1/4-3/8" (6-8 mm). Oval, convex above. Pronotum black with white border and 2 converging white stripes. Elytra are red or orange with 13 black spots (1 spot at scutellum and 6 on each elytron); sometimes spots are enlarged to form 3 transverse bands. Larva is velvety black with 8 orange spots. Pupa is black with red spots.
Food Aphids and other small insects.
Life Cycle Female may lay up to 500 eggs during a lifespan of a few months; clusters of 5-30 eggs are attached on leaves and twigs. Larvae feed, then pupate attached by the back end to some support. Many generations a year, if food supply is good.
Habitat Woods, meadows, and gardens.
Range Throughout North America.
Discussion Large numbers of ladybugs occasionally find their way into houses in autumn looking for places to spend the winter. In the West huge swarms fly into mountain canyons, overwinter under leaves, and return to valleys in the spring. Overwintering beetles are sometimes purchased by mail and freed near crops that are vulnerable to aphids.

 

[olena]

State Reptile

Racer
Coluber constrictor


Description 34-77" (86.4-195.5 cm). Large, slender, agile, and fast moving. Adults uniformly black, blue, brown, or greenish above; white, yellow, or dark gray below. Young typically gray and conspicuously marked with dark spots on sides and dark gray, brown, or reddish-brown blotches down midline of back. Scales smooth, in 17 rows (15 rows at vent). Anal plate divided.
Subspecies Eleven, poorly defined:
Northern Black (C. c. constrictor), slate black, upper lip scales black, some white on chin, iris of eye brown; s. Maine to e. Ohio south to n. South Carolina, n. Georgia, n. Alabama, and ne. Mississippi.
Buttermilk (C. c. anthicus), black, bluish-black or bluish-green with random white, gray, or yellow spots; extreme s. Arkansas, Louisiana, and adjacent e. Texas.
Tan (C. c. etheridgei), light tan with pale spots; extreme wc. Louisiana into adjacent e. Texas.
Eastern Yellow-bellied (C. c. flaviventris), pale blue, bluish-green, olive-green, gray or brown above, belly cream to bright yellow; e. Montana, w. North Dakota, and Iowa south to extreme n. Arkansas, and the Gulf coast of se. Texas and w. Louisiana.
Blue (C. c. foxii), pale-blue or bluish-green above, belly white or bluish-white; extreme s. Ontario and nw. Ohio west to se. Minnesota, e. Iowa, and Illinois.
Brown-chinned (C. c. helvigularis), slate black, lip scales and chin tan or brown; Apalachicola and Chipola River valleys in Florida panhandle and adjacent Georgia.
Black-masked (C. c. latrunculus), slate gray above, belly pale grayish-blue, black stripe behind eye; se. Louisiana.
Western Yellow-bellied (C. c. mormon), green, olive-green, yellowish-brown or reddish-brown above, belly yellow; s. British Columbia to Baja California east to sw. Montana, w. Wyoming, and w. Colorado.
Mexican (C. c. oaxaca), midline of back green or greenish-gray, sides lighter, belly yellow or greenish-yellow, adults 20-40" (51-102 cm) long; s. Texas and Mexico.
Everglades (C. c. paludicola), bluish-, greenish, or brownish-gray above, belly whitish with pale gray or powder-blue markings, iris of eye usually red; s. Florida Everglades region and Cape Canaveral area of e. Florida.
Southern Black (C. c. priapus), resembles Northern Black, more white on chin, iris of eye usually red or orange; coastal plain from extreme se. North Carolina to Florida Everglades (and lower Florida Keys) west to se. Oklahoma and adjacent Texas; north in Mississippi Valley to s. Illinois and s. Indiana.
Breeding Mates April to late May in most of range; 1-2 months earlier in Deep South. Female lays 5-28 soft leathery eggs with a rough granular texture, 1-1 7/8" (25-48 mm) long, in rotting tree stump, sawdust pile, under rocks or in small mammal tunnel, mid-June to August. Occasionally a number of females deposit their eggs in a communal nest. Young hatch in 6-9 weeks, July to September, are 8-13" (20-33 cm) long. Mature in 2-3 years.
Habitat Abandoned fields, grassland, sparse brushy areas along prairie land, open woodland, mountain meadows, rocky wooded hillsides, grassy-bordered streams, and pine flatwoods; sea level to ca. 7,000' (2,150 m).
Range S. British Columbia and extreme s. Ontario; every state in continental United States, except Alaska; scattered populations through e. Mexico to n. Guatemala.
Discussion Diurnal. May be encountered in most any terrestrial situation except atop high mountains and in hottest desert. Often observed streaking across roads. Although agile and a good climber, it spends most of its time on the ground. When hunting, it holds its head high and moves swiftly through cover. Often hibernates in rocky hillsides in large numbers and with other species. Eats large insects, frogs, lizards, snakes, small rodents, and birds. Despite the scientific name, it is not a constrictor.

 

[olena]

State Wildflower

Large-flower Trillium
Trillium grandiflorum
Large-flower Wakerobin

Description The large, solitary, waxy-white flower (turning pink with age) is on an erect stalk above a whorl of 3 broad leaves.
Flowers: 2-4" (5-10 cm) wide; petals 3, large, wavy-edged; sepals 3, green; stamens 6, with yellow anthers.
Leaves: 3-6" (7.5-15 cm) long; broadly ovate to diamond-shaped, pointed.
Fruit: red berry.
Height: 8-18" (20-45 cm).
Flower April-June.
Habitat Rich woods, thickets, usually basic or neutral soils.
Range Ontario, Quebec, western Maine, and New Hampshire; south to Georgia; west to Arkansas; north to Minnesota.
Discussion This largest and showiest trillium is frequently cultivated in wildflower gardens. The underground rootstalks were gathered and chewed by Native Americans for a variety of medicinal purposes. The plants have also been picked and eaten as cooked greens. This practice may be fatal to the plant, since these trilliums arise from the rootstalks, which often die if the leaves are removed.

 

[olena]

State Animal

White-tailed Deer
Odocoileus virginianus

Description Size varies greatly; a small to medium-size deer. Tan or reddish brown above in summer; grayish brown in winter. Belly, throat, nose band, eye ring, and inside of ears are white. Tail brown, edged with white above, often with dark stripe down center; white below. Black spots on sides of chin. Buck’s antlers have main beam forward, several unbranched tines behind, and a small brow tine; antler spread to 3' (90 cm). Doe rarely has antlers. Fawn spotted. Ht 27–45" (68–114 cm); L 6' 2"–7' (1.88–2.13 m); T 6–13" (15–33 cm); HF 19–20" (47.5–51.2 cm); Wt male 150–310 lb (68–141 kg), female 90–211 lb (41–96 kg).
Endangered Status Two subspecies of the White-tailed Deer are on the U.S. Endangered Species List. The Key Deer is classified as endangered in Florida, and the Columbian White-tailed Deer is classified as endangered in Washington and Oregon. The Key Deer declined in number as more and more of its habitat in the Florida Keys underwent development throughout the 20th century. Development continues to be a threat to the subspecies today. In 1961 the National Key Deer Refuge was established to protect the deer. The population has risen from a possible low of 25 animals in 1955 to about 250 to 300 today. The Columbian White-tailed Deer once ranged from Puget Sound to southern Oregon, where it lived in floodplain and riverside habitat. The conversion of much of its homeland to agriculture and unrestricted hunting reduced its numbers to a just a few hundred in the early 20th century. It now lives in a few scattered populations, and its numbers have climbed to over 6,000. Julia Butler Hansen Refuge for the Columbian Whitetail Deer provides critical habitat for these deer in southern Washington.

Similar Species Mule Deer has antlers with both main beams branching; tail tipped with black.
Breeding Reproductive season varies: first 2 weeks in November in north, January or February in south. 1–3 young born after gestation of about 6 1/2 months.
Habitat Farmlands, brushy areas, woods, and suburbs and gardens.
Range Southern half of southern tier of Canadian provinces; most of U.S., except far Southwest.
Discussion Although primarily nocturnal, the White-tailed Deer may be active at any time. It often moves to feeding areas along established trails, then spreads out to feed. The animal usually beds down near dawn, seeking concealing cover. This species is a good swimmer. The winter coat of the northern deer has hollow hair shafts, which fill with air, making the coat so buoyant that it would be difficult for the animal to sink should it become exhausted while swimming. The White-tailed Deer is also a graceful runner, with top speeds to 36 mph (58 km/h), although it flees to nearby cover rather than run great distances. This deer can make vertical leaps of 8 1/2 feet (2.6 m) and horizontal leaps of 30 feet (9 m). The White-tailed Deer grazes on green plants, including aquatic ones in the summer; eats acorns, beechnuts, and other nuts and corn in the fall; and in winter browses on woody vegetation, including the twigs and buds of viburnum, birch, maple, and many conifers. The four-part stomach allows the deer to feed on items that most other mammals cannot eat. It can obtain nutrients directly from the food, as well as nutrients synthesized by microbes in its digestive system. This deer eats 5 to 9 pounds (2.25–4 kg) of food per day and drinks water from rain, snow, dew, or a water source. When nervous, the White-tailed Deer snorts through its nose and stamps its hooves, a telegraphic signal that alerts other nearby deer to danger. If alarmed, the deer raises, or "flags," its tail, exhibiting a large, bright flash of white; this communicates danger to other deer and helps a fawn follow its mother in flight.There are two types of social grouping: the family group of a doe and her young, which remain together for nearly a year (and sometimes longer), and the buck group. The family group usually disbands just before the next birth, though occasionally two sets of offspring are present for short periods. Bucks are more social than does for most of the year, forming buck groups of three to five individuals; the buck group, which constantly changes and disbands shortly before the fall rut, is structured as a dominance hierarchy. Threat displays include stares, lowered ears, and head-up and head-down postures. Attacks involve kicking and, less commonly, rearing and flailing with the forefeet. Bucks and does herd separately most of the year, but in winter they may gather together, or "yard up." As many as 150 deer may herd in a yard. Yarding keeps the trails open through the movement of large groups of animals, and provides protection from predators. The leadership of the yards is matriarchal. Deer may occupy the same home range year after year, and may defend bedding sites, but otherwise are not territorial. The White-tailed Deer is less polygamous than other deer, and a few bucks mate with only one doe. The extended rutting season begins at about the time the male is losing his velvet, which varies with latitude. At this time, bucks are still in buck groups, and sparring for dominance increases. (Sparring consists of two deer trying to push each other backward.) The buck group then breaks up, and several bucks begin following a doe at a distance of 150 feet (50 m) or so. They follow the doe’s scent; the largest buck stays closest to the female. A buck attempts to dominate other bucks and may mate with several does over the breeding season. He produces "buck rubs" and also "scrapes," revisiting them regularly during the rut; glandular secretions are left on the rubs. Does visit the scrapes and urinate in them; bucks then follow the trails of the does. After the mating season, the doe returns to the subherd until spring (May or June in the North; January to March in the deep South). A young doe bred for the first time usually produces one fawn, but thereafter has twins and occasionally triplets if food is abundant. The female remains near the fawns, returning to feed them only once or twice a day. Twin fawns are separated, which serves to protect them. Weaning occurs between one and two and a half months. Fawns stay with the mother into the fall or winter, sometimes for up to two years, but the doe generally drives off her young of the previous year shortly before giving birth. The Whitetail’s first antlers are usually a single spike (the "spikehorn"). A three-year-old would be expected to have eight points, but there can be more or less, as the number of tines is influenced greatly by nutritional factors. A Whitetail’s age is determined not by the number of tines on its horns but by the wear on its teeth.
Once nearly exterminated in much of the Northeast and Midwest, this deer is now more abundant than ever, owing to hunting restrictions and the decline in number of its predators, wolves and the Mountain Lion. It has become the most plentiful game animal in eastern North America and is even something of a pest in many areas, eating garden plants and contributing to the spread of Lyme disease. Thinning the deer population is best done by hunting both does and bucks, as hunting bucks only alters the herd rather than reducing it.
There are two dwarf subspecies of White-tailed Deer: the Coues’ Deer, or Arizona Whitetail (O. v. couesi), of the Arizona desert, and the Key Deer (O. v. clavium) of the Big Pine Key area in the Florida Keys. The Coues’ Deer, which has somewhat enlarged ears and tail relative to the other Whitetails, reaches a maximum of about 100 pounds (45 kg). The tiny, dog-size Key Deer weighs 45-75 pounds (21-34 kg) or less. Some mammalogists classify the Key Deer as a separate species.

Previous Natural States
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Maine
Massachusetts
Michigan
Rhode Island
Utah
Vermont
Washington
West Virginia


Previous Natural Provinces
Manitoba
Prince Edward Island

 

[nativetxn]

Okay, I could have lived without a photo of that snake but I love your state info, Heather. Thank you!

 

[helenabear]

Oh wow Heather!!! This is great!!! I love seeing all this info here... will have to come back and read more later tonight. I love that cardinal pic too! Thanks

 

[bobbiwoz]

Thank you for the information. I can testify that large number of Convergent Lady Beetles make their way into houses in the fall. I had never experienced this phenomenon until moving to Ohio 10 years ago, and a friend who lives in Michigan finds the same thing happens in her region. They gather on warm bricks and somehow find their way into the houses. Better than racers in the house, that's for sure.

Bobbi

 

[Snowwark]

As long as it's just a picture of a snake, I'll be okay!

They've found their way into our house too, Bobbi! A couple of weeks ago I was finding them everywhere, even in our bedroom!

The Trillium is also our official flower!

Interesting story about President McKinley and the scarlet carnation.

I love seeing the cardinals visiting our yard, especially against a snowy backdrop, they're so beautiful!

Thank you, Heather, great info!!

 

[olena]

OK, Kim! Just for you! Ontario will be next week's choice!

There won't be any ~Natural State! for the week of Dec 1-5. I'll be at WDW. I think many DISers will also be there....

 

[Snowwark]

That would be very cool, Heather!!

I'm really looking forward to meeting you, Bud! I can't believe it's coming so fast, I'm NOT ready!!!

 

[catsrule]

cool Heather! I know all about those lady beetles trying to come into the house.