The Very Red State Bird Happens to Be:
Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Adopted in 1929.

In 1928, the Macomb branch of the National Federation of Professional Women's Clubs urged that Illinois schoolchildren select a State Bird. The idea was approved by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, and schoolchildren chose the Cardinal from a list of five birds conspicuous in Illinois.

Thus, Illinois became the first of seven states to choose the cardinal as its state bird. The cardinal was made the official bird of Illinois in 1929 after receiving 39,226 votes. Schoolchildren selected this bird over the bluebird, meadowlark, quail and oriole. 

The cardinal was named by early American settlers, after Catholic cardinals who dress in bright red robes. These birds are strongly territorial and have a loud, whistling song.

Source: http://www.statehousegirls.net/il/symbols/bird/

(Lepomis macrochirus) Info from:http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/fish/infish/species/bgl/bgl.htm

Schoolchildren selected the Bluegill as the state fish in 1986. Bluegills may be distinguished from other sunfish by the dark spot at the base of the dorsal fin, vertical bars on their sides, and a relatively small mouth. The spiny dorsal fin usually has 10 spines (but may have as many as 11 or as few as 9), and is broadly connected to the soft dorsal. The anal fin has three spines. The back and upper sides are usually dark olive green blending to lavender, brown, copper, or orange on the sides, and reddish-orange or yellow on the belly. Colors are more intense in breeding males, and vertical bars may take on a reddish hue.

State Animal — White-tailed Deer: The State Animal was selected by a vote of Illinois schoolchildren in 1980. Candidates were nominated by the General Assembly and by the Illinois State Museum. The children selected the Whitetailed Deer, and a bill, effective Jan. 1, 1982, was passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. James R. Thompson. The deer, native to North America, has a gray coat that turns reddish brown in summer and an eyecatching tail that is bright white on the underside.

The Square Dance was designated as the official state dance in 1990.Square dancing is a folk dancing tradition of the United States. It is recorded as early as 1651.

(Danaus plexippus)

Monarch butterflies are commonly found in Illinois from May through October. Monarchs living east of the Rockies (including those from Illinois) spend the winter in a mountainous area in central Mexico, some leaving as early as August to begin this 2000-mile flight. The western monarchs winter along the coast of California near Monterey. Coming to rest in the evening, the butterflies cluster together on foliage of trees and shrubs.

Info from: http://www.museum.state.il.us/exhibits/symbols/insect.html

In Spring when the female butterflies migrate northward, they lay eggs on various species of milkweed. The development period from the egg through larva and chrysalis to the adult ranges from 20 to 33 days. The development time depends on temperature (faster in warmer areas). Some monarchs remain in the vicinity of their breeding grounds; others fly north to lay eggs.

Known unofficially as the “Prairie State”, a fitting nickname for a state that sets aside the third full week in September each year as Illinois Prairie Week to demonstrate the value of preserving and reestablishing native Illinois prairies.
source: State Names, Seals, Flags, and Symbols by Benjamin F. Shearer, Barbara S. Shearer

The white oak can be very large. Individual trees commonly reach a height of 30 meters (100 ft.). When growing in the open, they often have widely spreading branches. These characteristics make white oaks excellent shade trees.

The leaves of the white oak are quite variable in size and shape. They are generally between 13 and 23 centimeters (5 and 9 in.) in length; they are narrow toward the stem and have seven to nine lobes. The leaves turn red or purple in the Fall.

White oaks begin to produce acorns when they are about twenty years old. The acorns are about 2.5 centimeters (1 in.) long. Acorns are produced in the Fall, and the number of acorns varies from year to year. Large numbers of acorns are produced every four to ten years. When the acorns fall to the ground, they are an important food for many kinds of birds and mammals.

The wood of the white oak is strong, durable, and beautiful. For these reasons the wood is harvested for use in cabinetry, interior finishing, and general construction.

The bark is pale gray and narrowly furrowed. It has scaly ridges and smooth patches. The smooth patches are a result of a fungus (Aleurodiscus oakesii) that invades the outer (non-living) portion of the bark. This fungus causes the older outer bark to flake off leaving the smooth patches. This fungus does not harm the tree.

White oaks prefer rich, well-drained soil. In Illinois they are found in a variety of habitats. However, they grow best on uplands, slopes, and terraces. The geographic range of white oak extends from Maine to Minnesota, south to eastern Texas and northern Florida.

White Oak

(Quercus alba)

• Kaskaskia — 1818 to 1820

The first capitol building was in Kaskaskia. It was a simple two-story brick building that rented for $4 per day.

• Vandalia — 1820 to 1839

Vandalia became the second capital of Illinois in 1820, and was the site of three capitol buildings. Vandalia's first capitol was a simple two-story structure, which was destroyed by fire. In 1824, Vandalia's second capitol was built to replace the burnt building for $15,000.

Soon after the third capitol building was built, many Illinoisans began lobbying to move the capital to a more central location in the state. In 1833, the General Assembly responded by passing an act allowing Illinoisans to choose their capital city. This worried the people of Vandalia, who did not want to lose the capital.

Therefore, in 1836, without authorization from the General Assembly, the city tore down the third capitol building and replaced it with the fourth, a brick state house, costing $16,000. Despite this, Illinois voters selected Springfield as the new state capital city in 1839.

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Springfield — December 1839 - present.

• The fifth Capitol — the Old State Capitol in downtown Springfield — is where Abraham Lincoln served as a state legislator and is open to the public as a historic site.

Illinois' fifth capitol was built in Springfield in 1853 at a cost of $260,000

Construction on the sixth and present capitol was begun in 1868. The building took twenty years to complete at a cost of $4.5 million.

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The sixth and present State Capitol is located at Second & Capitol Streets in Springfield and dates back to 1868. It took 20 years to complete the building at a cost of $4.4 million.

The State Flower:

Native Violet 
(Viola sororia) Adopted in 1908. 

Illinois  was the first of four states to choose the violet as its state flower. The violet was selected to be Illinois' state flower by schoolchildren in 1908. 

Although its name suggests its color, the violet comes in many colors including yellow, white, blue-violet, lilac-purple, and even an unusual green! There are at least 30 common violet species in Illinois with at least 25 types found in the Chicago area alone. Most species have small flowers (about 1 inch to 1½ inches across) usually containing five petals.

  Violets are found in all kinds of sites from sunny prairies and lawns to shady woods and wetlands. The flowering season of the violet depends on the species and spans from mid-March to June. The whole violet is a favorite meal of rabbits, while mice, wild turkeys, ruffed grouse and mourning doves eat only the seeds.

The law that made the violet the state flower designated the "blue violet." Unfortunately, Gleason and Cronquist recognize approximately eight species of blue-flowered violets in the state. The most common of these is the dooryard violet (Viola sororia).