Horses, beavers and squirrels, oh my! Here's every state animal across the US.

Each state is unique for its landscape, culture and various emblems. State symbols like official birds, trees, flags and flowers are common, but did you know some states have some uncommon ones? For example, Utah has a state cooking pot (the Dutch oven) and over half the states have official tartans. Twenty states have milk listed as a state beverage or drink.

When it comes to state mammals, not every state thinks the same. Some list state animals, some specify state mammals and some even include land and ocean mammals. Some don't have one at all.

Alabama

The black bear is Alabama's state mammal.

Alaska

The moose is Alaska's state mammal, chosen for its abundance along the Unuk River and Southeast, Southcentral and Interior Alaska.

Arizona

Arizona's state mammal is the ringtail, a close relative of the raccoon and coatimundi.

Arkansas

As the most popular game animal in the state, the white-tailed deer is Arkansas' state mammal.

California

The California grizzly bear is California's state mammal. These grizzly bears are now extinct due to hunting in California.

Colorado

Colorado's state mammal is the Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and it is only found in the Rockies.

Connecticut

Connecticut's state mammal is the sperm whale, the largest of the Earth's toothed whales. Connecticut had the second-largest whaling industry in the 1800s, just after Massachusetts.

Delaware

The grey fox is designated as Delaware's state wildlife animal. This mammal is indigenous to the state.

District of Columbia

Washington, D.C.'s official state mammal was decided in 2020 and is the Big Brown Bat, a mouse-eared bat species found in D.C. and other parts of the U.S.

Florida

Florida's state animal is the Florida panther, but the state also lists manatees as the state marine mammal and porpoises or dolphins as the state saltwater mammal.

Georgia

Georgia has two state mammals: the white-tailed deer and the right whale

Hawaii

Hawaii has named three state mammals: the humpback whale, the Hawaiian monk seal and the Hawaiian hoary bat, designated in 2015. According to the state Senate legislature, the state named its official mammals to increase awareness and combat potential extinction. The most recent, the hoary bat, is the only remaining native land mammal in Hawaii.

Idaho

Idaho doesn't have a state mammal but it does have a state horse, the Appaloosa.

Illinois

Like Arkansas and Georgia, Illinois' state mammal is the white-tailed deer.

Indiana

Indiana does not have a state mammal as of 2023.

Iowa

Iowa does not have a state mammal as of 2023.

Kansas

The American Bison is the state mammal of Kansas.

Kentucky

Kentucky's state mammal is the gray squirrel, declared in 1968 as the state wild animal game species.

Louisiana

The black bear is Louisiana's state mammal.

Maine

Maine's state mammal is the moose. This state is the only eastern state to have a sizeable moose population, according to the Maine Secretary of State's office.

Maryland

Maryland doesn't have an official state mammal but they do have a state dog, cat and horse. Maryland's state horse is a Thoroughbred, its state dog a Chesapeake Bay Retriever and its state cat a calico cat.

Massachusetts

Massachusett's state marine mammal is the right whale.

Michigan

The white-tailed deer is Michigan's state game mammal.

Minnesota

While Minnesota does not have an official state animal, several proposed options include the white-tailed deer, the Eastern timber wolf, the black bear, the thirteen-lined ground squirrel, the wood tick and the wolf.

Mississippi

Mississippi's state land mammal is the white-tailed deer and the red fox, and the state water mammal is the bottlenose dolphin.

Missouri

The Missouri mule, a hybrid horse and donkey, is Missouri's official state animal.

Montana

Montana's state mammal, the grizzly bear, was voted on by Montana schoolchildren.

Nebraska

Nebraska's state mammal is the white-tailed deer.

Nevada

The Desert Bighorn Sheep is the official state animal of Nevada.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire's state animal is the white-tailed deer

New Jersey

Horses are New Jersey's state animal, chosen by a fifth grader and eighth grader because of their importance to farming and race horsing in New Jersey.

New Mexico

The American black bear is New Mexico's state mammal. The famous Smokey Bear was a real black bear found injured after a forest fire in New Mexico and was later chosen as a symbol for fire prevention campaigns.

New York

New York's state mammal is the beaver. Beaver commerce led to the establishment of Dutch and English trading posts where New York was colonized.

North Dakota

North Dakota does not have a designated state mammal but the Nokota horse is the state's official horse.

Horses are prominent state symbols for six states, among others.
Horses are prominent state symbols for six states, among others.

Ohio

Ohio's state mammal is the white-tailed deer.

Oklahoma

The American bison is Oklahoma's state animal. Oklahoma also designates the Mexican free-tailed bat as its official state flying mammal and the raccoon as its state furbearer.

Oregon

Oregon's state animal is the beaver and is known as the "Beaver State."

Pennsylvania

The white-tailed deer is Pennsylvania's state animal.

Rhode Island

Rhode Island selected the harbor seal as its official state marine mammal in 2016.

South Carolina

South Carolina has a lengthy list of state animals. Its official state animal is the white-tailed deer. It also designated the mule as its state heritage work animal, the bottlenose dolphin as its state marine mammal and the northern right whale as the official state migratory marine mammal.

South Dakota

The coyote is South Dakota's state animal.

Tennessee

Tennessee has an official state wild animal, the raccoon. 

Texas

The armadillo is Texas' state small mammal and the longhorn is the state's official large mammal. Texas also holds the Mexican free-tailed bat as its state flying mammal.

Utah

Utah's state animal is the elk

Vermont

The Morgan horse is Vermont's chosen state animal.

Virginia

Virginia doesn't have an official state mammal, but its state bat is the Virginia Big-eared bat and its state dog is the American foxhound.

Washington

Washington has both a state endemic mammal, the Olympic marmot (mammals only found in one location), and a state marine mammal, the orca.

West Virginia

The black bear was chosen by students, teachers and sportsmen as the state animal of West Virginia.

Wisconsin

Wisconsin designates two state animals: the white-tailed deer as the state's wildlife animal and the dairy cow as the state's domesticated animal.

Wyoming

The bison is Wyoming's official state mammal.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: State animals across the US: Full list of every official mammal