Why Texas chose the northern mockingbird as its state bird

Hello, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. Texas chose the northern mockingbird as its state bird, with this legislation -- “a fighter for the protection of his home, falling, if need be, in its defense, like any true Texan." Like Texans, they are mostly meat eaters, insects instead of beef, but also fruits and berries. They’ll defend their favorite berry patches (beware if you are competing with them gathering blackberries for a pie.) They aren’t one bit shy, this is the bird people see most often as they hunt insects on lawns, running and occasionally opening their wings, before pouncing. My brother Billy and I raised a young mockingbird in our kitchen. We named him Orville Wright. He made his maiden flight and landed on the edge of a pan Kappy was scrambling eggs in, the heat of which prompted a poop!