~The Natural State~......NEW YORK

[olena]

State Fruit

Paradise Apple
Malus pumila (Malus sylvestris)
Common Apple, Wild Apple, European Apple

Description This familiar fruit tree naturalized locally has a short trunk, spreading rounded crown, showy pink-tinged blossoms, and delicious red fruit.
Height: 30-40' (9-12 m).
Diameter: 1-2' (0.3-0.6 m).
Leaves: 2-3 1/2" (5-9 cm) long, 1 1/4-2 1/4" (3-6 cm) wide. Ovate or elliptical; wavy saw-toothed; hairy leafstalk. Green above, densely covered with gray hairs beneath.
Bark: gray; fissured and scaly.
Twigs: greenish, turning brown; densely covered with white hairs when young.
Flowers: 1 1/4" (3 cm) wide; with 5 rounded petals, white tinged with pink; in early spring.
Fruit: the familiar edible apple; 2-3 1/2" (5-9 cm) in diameter; shiny red or yellow; sunken at ends; thick sweet pulp; star-shaped core contains up to 10 seeds; matures in late summer.
Habitat Moist soils near houses, fences, roadsides, and clearings.
pb[Range [/b]Native of Europe and W. Asia; naturalized locally across S. Canada, in eastern United States, and in Pacific states.
Discussion The Paradise Apple has been cultivated since ancient times. Numerous improved varieties have been developed from this species and from hybrids with related species. Although well known, it is sometimes not recognized when growing wild. For nearly fifty years Jonathan Chapman (1774-1845), better known as Johnny Appleseed, traveling mostly on foot, distributed apple seeds to everybody he met. With seeds from cider presses, he helped to establish orchards from Pennsylvania to Illinois. Wildlife consume quantities of fallen fruit after harvest.

 

[olena]

State Animal

American Beaver
Castor canadensis

Description A very large, bulky rodent, with rounded head and small, rounded ears. Dark brown fur is fine and soft. Scaly tail large, black, horizontally flattened, and paddle-shaped. Large, black, webbed hindfoot has 5 toes, with inner 2 nails cleft. Eyes and ears small. Large, dark orange incisors. L 3–4' (900–1,200 mm); T 11 3/4–17 1/2" (300–440 mm); HF 6 1/8–8 1/8" (156–205 mm); Wt usually 44–60 lb (20–27 kg), but sometimes up to 86 lb (39 kg).
Similar Species Muskrats and Nutria are much smaller and have slender tails.
Breeding Mates late January–late February; 1–8 kits (usually 4 or 5) born after gestation of 4 months.
Habitat Rivers, streams, marshes, lakes, and ponds.
Range Most of Canada and U.S., except for most of Florida, much of Nevada, and s California.
Discussion Active throughout the year, the American Beaver is primarily nocturnal and most likely to be observed in the evening. Beavers living along a river generally make burrows with an underwater entrance in the riverbank; these are known as bank beavers. Those in quiet streams, lakes, and ponds usually build dams and a lodge. The lodge has one or more underwater entrances; living quarters are in a hollow near the top. Wood chips on the floor absorb excess moisture, and a vent admits fresh air. The chief construction materials in the northern parts of the American Beaver’s range—poplar, aspen, willow, birch, and maple—are also the preferred foods. To fell a tree, the beaver gnaws around it, biting out chips in a deep groove. Small trees 2 to 6 inches (50–150 mm) in diameter are usually selected, though occasionally larger ones as much as 33 inches (850 mm) thick are felled; a willow 5 inches (125 mm) thick can be cut down in three minutes. The beaver trims off branches, cuts them into convenient sizes (about 1 to 2 inches /25–50 mm thick and 6 feet/1.8 m long), and carries them in its mouth to the dam site. There it either eats the bark, turning the branches in its forefeet as humans eat an ear of corn, or stores them underwater for winter use by poking the ends into the muddy bottom of the pond or stream. Dam designs vary widely: To lessen water pressure in swift streams, dams may be bowed upstream; in times of flood, temporary spillways may be constructed. Dam repair is constant; the sound of running water stimulates the beaver to repair the dam. Well adapted to its highly aquatic life, the beaver swims, using its webbed hindfeet, at speeds up to 6 mph (10 km/h). The tail serves as a rudder, and the forefeet are held close to the chest, free to hold objects against the chest or to push aside debris. When the animal is submerged, valves close off the ears and nostrils; skin flaps seal the mouth, leaving the front incisors exposed for carrying branches; and clear membranes slide over the eyes, protecting them from floating debris. A beaver can remain submerged for up to 15 minutes before surfacing for air. When the animal is swimming, usually only the head is visible, whereas with muskrats, both head and back are partially above water. The beaver combs its fur with the two split nails on its hindfoot, and waterproofs it by applying castoreum, an oily secretion from scent glands near the anus. A thick layer of fat beneath the skin provides insulation from chilly water in winter. On land, the beaver is far less at ease than when in the water, and frequently interrupts its activity to sniff the air and look for signs of danger. Beavers are believed to pair for life. Kits are born well furred, with eyes open, and weighing about 1 pound (.5 kg). They may take to the water inside their lodge within a half hour and are skillful swimmers within a week; if tired, they may rest or be ferried upon the mother’s back. On land, the mother often carries kits on her broad tail and sometimes walks erect and holds them in her forepaws. The young remain with their parents for two years, helping with housekeeping chores until they are driven away just before the birth of a new litter.Great expanses of the U.S. and Canada were first explored by trappers and traders in search of beaver pelts, the single most valuable commodity in much of North America during the early 19th century. The fur was in constant demand for robes and coats, clothing trim, and top hats (sometimes called "beavers") that were fashionable in European capitals and urban areas of the eastern U.S. Some of America’s great financial empires and real estate holdings were founded on profits from the trade in beaver fur. Unregulated trapping continued for so long—well into the 20th century in some areas—that the American Beaver disappeared from much of its original range. Now reestablished over most of the continent and protected from overexploitation, it has become an agricultural pest in some regions, and it kills many trees, most of little value as timber. Its dams may block the upstream run of spawning salmon and flood stands of commercial timber, highways, and croplands, or change a farmer’s pond or stream into a slough that will eventually become a meadow. However, the dams also help reduce erosion, and the ponds formed by the dams may create a favorable habitat for many forms of life: Insects lay eggs in them, fish feed on the insect larvae, and many kinds of waterfowl and mammals—including otters, Minks, Moose, and deer—come to feed and drink. The beaver’s fine, soft fur is highly prized, and its meat is considered a delicacy by some residents of the far north. Aside from trappers, the otter is the beaver’s most important enemy, though the Gray Wolf, Coyote, Common Red Fox, and Bobcat also prey upon it.

 

[olena]

State Bird

Eastern Bluebird
Sialia sialis


Description
7" (17 cm). Bright blue above and on wings and tail; rusty throat and breast; white belly and undertail coverts. Female similar, but duller.
Voice
Call a liquid and musical turee or queedle. Song a soft melodious warble.
Habitat
Open woodlands and farmlands with scattered trees.
Nesting
4-6 pale blue eggs in a loose cup of grasses and plant stems in natural tree cavities, old woodpecker holes, fence posts, and bird boxes.
Range
Breeds east of Rockies from southeastern Canada to Gulf of Mexico; also in mountains of southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. Winters in southern part of breeding range. Also in Mexico.
Discussion
This beautiful bird is a favorite of many people and is eagerly awaited in the spring after a long winter. In places where bluebird nest boxes are erected and European Starlings and House Sparrows are controlled, up to six pairs of bluebirds will nest on as many acres. In the past 25 years bluebirds have become uncommon in the East for reasons not altogether clear. Competition for nest sites with European Starlings and House Sparrows is likely a critical factor. The erection of many artificial nest boxes in recent years seems to be helping to increase the population.

 

[olena]

State Fish

Brook Trout
Salvelinus fontinalis

Description To 21" (53 cm); 14 1/2 lbs (6.6 kg). Elongate, fusiform, depth about one-fifth length. Marine coloration: back bluish-green, becoming silvery on sides, belly white. Freshwater coloration: back and sides have red or yellowish tint with lighter wavy lines; sides have red spots within blue halos; belly ordinarily white, reddish in adult males; pectoral, pelvic, and anal fins light orange to red, leading edges white followed by dark, dorsal fin with dark, undulating lines. Maxilla extends well beyond eye. Fins relatively large; adipose fin present; caudal fin slightly forked.
Habitat Clear, cool, freshwater streams; tidal streams; rarely in salt water.
Range Native to E. Canada and NE. United States and Great Lakes region south to N. Georgia. Introduced in W. United States at higher elevations.
Discussion The Brook Trout, highly esteemed as food and game, is one of the most colorful freshwater fishes. It feeds on a variety of organisms, including other fishes, but primarily on aquatic insects. Spawning occurs in small headwater streams. The largest Brook Trout, weighing 14 1/2 pounds (6.6 kg), was caught in 1916 in the Nipigon River, Ontario. It is also known as the Squaretail or the Speck.

 

[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 Flower

Prickly Rose
Rosa acicularis
Wild Rose

Description A deciduous shrub up to 4 ft. tall with densely prickly stems and pink, 5-petaled flowers. Foliage is pinnately compound and somewhat pubescent. Flowers, usually solitary but sometimes in small clusters, are followed by smooth rosehips.
Habitat Thickets; stream banks; rocky bluffs; wooded hillsides.
Range Circumpolar, irregularly south in North America to w. New England, n. Great Plains, and Rocky Mountains.

Great Rose Trivia

The real beauty in roses is the story behind them. For centuries, roses have inspired love and brought beauty to those who have received them. In fact, the rose's rich heritage dates back thousands of years.

People have been passionate about roses since the beginning of time. It is said that the floors of Cleopatra's palace were carpeted with delicate rose petals, and that the wise and knowing Confucius had a 600 book library specifically on how to care for roses.

Wherefore art thou rose? In the readings of Shakespeare, of course. He refers to roses more than 50 times throughout his writings.

One thousand years old. That's the age the world's oldest living rose bush is thought to be. Today, it continues to flourish on the wall of the Hildesheim Cathedral in Germany.

Why white roses are so special is no mystery -- it's a myth. Perhaps it started with the Romans, who believed white roses grew where the tears of Venus fell as she mourned the loss of her beloved Adonis.

Myth also has it that Venus' son Cupid accidentally shot arrows into the rose garden when a bee stung him, and it was the "sting" of the arrows that caused the roses to grow thorns. And, when Venus walked through the garden and pricked her foot on a thorn, it was the droplets of her blood which turned the roses red.

The rose is a legend of its own. The story goes that during the Roman empire, there was an incredibly beautiful maiden named Rhodanthe. Her beauty drew many zealous suitors who pursued her relentlessly. Exhausted by their pursuit, Rhodanthe was forced to take refuge from her suitors in the temple of her friend Diana. Unfortunately, Diana became jealous. And, when the suitors broke down her temple gates to get near their beloved Rhodanthe, she also became angry, turning Rhodanthe into a rose and her suitors into thorns.

Dolly Parton may be known for her music and theme park. But, rose lovers know her for the orange / red variety bearing her name.

A rose by any other name... According to Greek Mythology, it was Aphrodite who gave the rose its name.

While the rose may bear no fruit, the rose hips (the part left on the plant after a rose is done blooming) contain more Vitamin C than almost any other fruit or vegetable.

The rose is a symbol of the times. In fact, it's the official National Floral Emblem of the United States, where June is National Rose Month.

Leave it to the romantic French to be the ones to first deliver roses. It was in the seventeenth century that French explorer Samuel deChamplain brought the first cultivated roses to North America.

Roses are truly ageless. Recently, archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of wild roses over 40 million years old.

The people of ancient Greece used roses to accessorize. On festive occasions, they would adorn themselves with garlands of roses and splash themselves with scented oil.

Napoleon's wife Josephine so adored roses, she grew more than 250 varieties.

 

[olena]

State Tree

Sugar Maple
Acer saccharum


Description Large tree with rounded, dense crown and striking, multicolored foliage in autumn.
Height: 70-100' (21-30 m).
Diameter: 2-3" (0.6-0.9 m).
Leaves: opposite; 3 1/2-5 1/2" (9-14 cm) long and wide; palmately lobed with 5 deep long-pointed lobes; few narrow long-pointed teeth; 5 main veins from base; leafstalks long and often hairy. Dull dark green above, paler and often hairy on veins beneath; turning deep red, orange, and yellow in autumn.
Bark: light gray; becoming rough and deeply furrowed into narrow scaly ridges.
Twigs: greenish to brown or gray; slender.
Flowers: 3/16" (5 mm) long; with bell-shaped 5-lobed yellowish-green calyx; male and female in drooping clusters on long slender hairy stalks; with new leaves in early spring.
Fruit: 1-1 1/4" (2.5-3 cm) long including long wing; paired forking keys; brown, 1-seeded; maturing in autumn.
Habitat Moist soils of uplands and valleys, sometimes in pure stands.
Range Extreme SE. Manitoba east to Nova Scotia, south to North Carolina, and west to E. Kansas local in NW. South Carolina and N. Georgia; to 2500' (762 m) in north and 3000-5500' (914-1676 m) in southern Appalachians.
Discussion Maples, particularly Sugar Maple, are among the leading furniture woods. This species is used also for flooring, boxes and crates, and veneer. Some trees develop special grain patterns, including birdseye maple with dots suggesting the eyes of birds, and curly and fiddleback maple, with wavy annual rings. Such variations in grain are in great demand. The boiled concentrated sap is the commercial source of maple sugar and syrup, a use colonists learned from the Indians. Each tree yields between 5 and 60 gallons of sap per year; about 32 gallons of sap make 1 gallon of syrup or 4 1/2 pounds of sugar.

Previous Natural States
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Florida
Iowa
Kansas
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
New Hampshire
Ohio
Rhode Island
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Washington
West Virginia


Previous Natural Provinces
Manitoba
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec

 

[marydmjj]

Thanks Heather. I would love to see an Eastern Bluebird someday. Heck, I would love to see New York someday.

 

[Wishydoo]

Hi Heather

I've been waiting for New York...thanks!

I am surprised that Empire Apples aren't the state fruit, hehe.
And I had no idea that the beaver was the state animal!

From personal experience, I can tell you that those "helicopters" , as we call them on the Maple trees, are a pain in the butt when they fall off.

Thanks again...nice!

 

[Tulirose]

YAY! New York!!! Thank you Olena.

Learned something new. Siblings told me, and I still believed up until a few minutes ago, that the number of spots on ladybugs tell you how old they are! I was/am such a gullible child!

Wishydoo - I so totally agree RE: Polynoses being a pain in the butt!

 

[amid chaos]

Heather..where do you get your pictures?...each and every one is just fabulous!!!!

 

[olena]

The pictures are my favorite part....

 

[amid chaos]

Such glorious pictures for each state!

 

[DebºoºS]

Yea! I Love NY!

pollynoses are a pain in the butt but funny when you stick em on your noses
Wild rose hips makes yummy jelly too

Great pics and info thanks so much

 

[nativetxn]

I would love to see a bluebird. Gorgeous photos, Heather

 

[Snowwark]

Oh I hope I get to see an Eastern Bluebird one day, it's so tweet!

Love the rose info, Olena, thank you!

Yummm...beavertails..lol.

Great pics, great post! Thank you very much, Heather!

I'm kind of playing catch-up here.