News

Maine’s State Bird Will Remain the Generic “Chickadee”

Maine’s State Bird Will Remain the Generic “Chickadee”

Photo: clipart.com


AUGUSTA, Maine (AP)   The chirping over the Maine state bird is over for now.

The Pine Tree State’s bird will remain the chickadee despite a push for specificity from a gaggle of schoolchildren. Fourth-grade students at Margaret Chase Smith School in Skowhegan brought forth a bill that would have clearly identified which species of chickadee in the state bird.

A legislative committee killed the bird bill with a unanimous vote on Wednesday. The Portland Press Herald reports Nick Lund of Maine Audubon testified in favor of the bill, but it was not enough to sway the committee.

A 92-year-old statute lists the generic “chickadee” as Maine’s state bird. The black-capped chickadee is pictured on the state’s licenses plates, but the boreal chickadee also lives in some parts of the state.

Latest Headlines

2 days ago in Entertainment

The game’s afoot as armchair detectives mark Sherlock Holmes Day

From 221B Baker Street in central London to a cliffside waterfall in the Swiss Alps, generations of armchair detectives are celebrating International Sherlock Holmes Day on Friday.

2 days ago in Entertainment, Trending

Paul McCartney helps Stephen Colbert say goodbye to ‘The Late Show’ in ambitious final show

Stephen Colbert chatted with Paul McCartney and joined him on stage for a raucous performance of "Hello, Goodbye" on the final broadcast of CBS' "The Late Show" on Thursday night, a bittersweet farewell for a canceled show that still had a few barbs left for the network that ended its 33-year run.

2 days ago in Sports, Trending

2-time NASCAR champ Kyle Busch dies at 41 after being hospitalized with a ‘severe illness’

Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup Series champion who won more races than anyone across NASCAR's three national series, has died. He was 41. The Busch Family, Richard Childress Racing and NASCAR issued a joint statement Thursday saying Busch died after being hospitalized. No cause of death was given.

3 days ago in Entertainment

Rami Malek explores art, love and death in Ira Sachs’ Cannes entry ‘The Man I Love’

In Ira Sachs' 1980s-set drama "The Man I Love," Rami Malek finds the most well-tailored role since his Oscar-winning portrayal of Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody."

4 days ago in Entertainment

As ‘The Boys’ ends, actors reveal their craziest stunts and what’s next for Vought

After five seasons of death, depravity and digs at the capitalistic superhero-industrial complex, "The Boys" dropped its series finale Wednesday.