Florida Needs a New State Bird

My Vote is for the Scrub Jay

Trail in Central Florida scrub. Photo: Author.

I walked along the sandy scrub of a preserve in Central Florida. A banana-sized flutter of blue caught my eye and landed in a short tree to my right. A scratchy sound, like sandpaper scuffing wood, cut through the air. In rapid succession, one, then two, then two more tufts of blue flanked me on all sides.

I …