Statewide Iowa – Iowa is one of three states without an official state fish. But a proposal by an area lawmaker could change that.
State Representative John Wills of Spirit Lake said the nomination came from a constituent.
Wills expects to hear other names floated for the state’s fish, like the blue gill or the channel cat, but he bids his luck to his constituency.
The Iowa Darter, by the way, is small.
Wills said the Iowa Darter is found in the Iowa Great Lakes. Male and female Iowa Darters have different color patterns, although you probably won’t see one because they often move through the water faster than the human eye can see. To see the Iowa Darter become the State Fish, Wills will need to convince his colleagues in the House and Senate to pass a resolution he is sponsoring. Iowa has only a handful of state symbols.
The legislature designated the American Goldfinch as the state bird – in 1933. The legislature that named the wild prairie raised the state flower 127 years ago. In 1961, the legislature declared the oak the state tree and in 1967 Iowa lawmakers named the geode the state stone to promote tourism in the Keokuk area where the stones – with internal crystals – are abundant. Since then, there have been proposals to name the ladybud as the state insect and the catfish as the state fish — but neither has gained endorsement by the Iowa legislature.
Photo: Iowa Darter Fish (Iowa DNR Photo)
