By LINDA CHION KENNEY
“Hey, everybody, have you heard?” There’s a bill introduced for the 2024 Florida legislative session that would upend the mockingbird’s stature as state bird.
With a bow to Carly Simon’s “Mockingbird” lyrics, the word is out that Sen. Tina Polsky, a Democrat whose district includes Boca Raton, is moving to give stature to the Florida scrub-jay, which, as Senate Bill 162 reads, is “the only bird species endemic to Florida.”
It’s not the first time the mockingbird has been under fire as the state bird in Florida, a designation it has held since 1927.
Described as a “year-round Florida resident” that is “helpful to humans because it usually feeds on insects and weed seeds,” the mockingbird is heralded as well for its “fierce defense of the family nest” and superb songbird abilities.
The Florida Department of State website further contends that the mockingbird, has a “pleasant lilting sound” that at times is “both varied and repetitive.”
But the mockingbird is not a state bird designation unique to Florida, as it also is the state bird of Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. And therein lies a problem for Polsky and others who have pushed to replace the state bird.
Polsky, herself, in last year’s legislative session, in Senate Bill 78, moved to replace the mockingbird with the Florida scrub-jay. Nearly identical to SB 162, Polsky in SB 78 noted that the Florida scrub-jay is protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and protected also as a threatened species by the federal Endangered Species Act and as a federally designated threatened species by the Florida Endangered and Threatened Species Rule.
With only a few thousand Florida scrub-jays remaining in the wild, some observers believe it is too rare to be designated as Florida’s state bird, which they argue should have greater exposure.
And it’s not the only bird that has been proposed to replace the mockingbird, whose habitat ranges from the East Coast to the Southwest and Mexico, according to the Audubon Society.
Florida lawmakers reportedly have considered changing the state bird in several failed attempts since 2016.
Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) in 2021, for example, moved to select a state bird that most represents Florida, telling National Public Radio that “it’s a fun conversation to have.” Toward that end, four main contenders reportedly emerged.
The Florida blue-jay made the list, along with the flamingo, osprey and roseate spoonbill.
The mockingbird even then, though, continued to have its supporters and likely will have supporters this go-around as well.
Stepping up to debate the issue in a 2021 Palm Beach Post report, Polsky joined with Anya Cane, a student at Florida Atlantic University High School in Boca Raton. They contended that this is the only bird species endemic to Florida, and “Floridians should have a state bird that we are proud of and one that represents the hard-working, family-oriented nature of our residents.”
Backing up this contention, they say the Florida scrub-jay has been noted as being “friendly, cooperative, family-oriented, bold, curious, protective, intelligent, resourceful” and that the bird is a “talented builder” with “a good memory” that “shares chores” and“stays close to home.”
But in debate, in the same opinion piece, is Marion P. Hammer, executive director of Unified Sportsmen of Florida and state lobbyist for the National Rifle Association. “Scrub-jays,” she said, “are evil little birds that rob the nests of other birds and eat their eggs and kill their babies.”
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Service Photo
The Florida scrub-jay is the only species of bird that is endemic to Florida.
Mockingbirds, on the other hand, because they feed on insects, “keep bugs away from patios” and “chase off intruders, including other birds, humans and animals, who get too close to their nests when there are eggs or babies in them.”
And then, of course, there’s the mockingbird’s vocal abilities.
“Mockingbirds are remarkable song birds that are known to sing up to 200 songs,” Hammer said. And “unlike the mockingbird, the scrub-jay can’t even sing — it can only squawk.”
To follow this and other bills in the upcoming legislative session, visit www.flsenate.gov/.