Washington State Facts – Part II

1. State bird – Willow Goldfinch
2. State dance – Square Dance
3. State endemic mammal – Olympic Marmot
4. State fish – Steelhead trout
5. State flower – Coast Rhododendron
6. State fossil – Columbian Mammoth
7. State fruit – Apple
8. State gem – Petrified wood
9. State insect – Green Darner Dragonfly
10. State marine mammal – Orca
11. State song – “Washington, My Home”
12. State tree – Western Hemlock
13. State vegetable – Walla Walla Sweet Onion
14. Largest Cities – Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Vancouver, Bellevue
15. Washington is the north-westernmost state of the contiguous United States.
16. The high mountains of the Cascade Range run north-south, bisecting the state.
17. Western Washington supports dense forests of conifers and areas of temperate rain forest.
18. Washington is home to several mountain ranges, the most prominent of which are the Cascade Range and the Olympic Mountains.
19. The Cascade Range contains several volcanoes, which reach altitudes higher than the rest of the mountains.
20. Mount St. Helens is the only Washington volcano that is actively erupting, and is located on the Cascade Range.
21. Weather – Western Washington, from the Cascade Range westward, has a mostly marine west coast climate with mild temperatures and wet winters, autumns, and springs.
22. Weather – Eastern Washington has a relatively dry climate, with large areas of semi-arid steppe and some arid deserts lying in the rain shadow of the Cascades.
23. Crops – Washington is the top apple-producing state in the nation, producing about 64% of the United States’ apples.
24. Crops – Washington produces the second largest amount of potatoes in the country.
25. Crops – Washington produces more hops, mint, and Kentucky bluegrass than any other state.
26. Crops – Washington is the leading producer of asparagus in the country, and also produces onions, carrots, dry peas, and lentils.