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Maine state symbols

Maine has 35 official state symbols. The oldest are the seal and the motto Dirigo, from 1820; the newest, adopted in 2025, are the spring peeper, the wood turtle and the Seppala Siberian sleddog. Maine law adds an unusual note: being named a state symbol gives a plant or animal no extra legal protection.

35 official designations · every law checked October 23, 2026

Pine, chickadee and moose

Maine’s oldest symbols after the seal came from its forests. The legislature chose the cone and tassel of the white pine as the state floral emblem in 1895, a tree part rather than a true flower. The chickadee followed in 1927, after a resolve by a representative from Southwest Harbor, and the white pine itself became the state tree in 1945. The moose became the state animal in 1979. The landlocked salmon, a form of the Atlantic salmon that lives its whole life in fresh water, became the state fish in 1969, and Maine later added two heritage fish, the eastern brook trout and the blueback charr.

No special protection

Maine law contains an unusual provision: designating something a state symbol gives it no extra protection under environmental or other laws. The moose, the wood turtle and the rest are protected, or not, by the same rules as any other species.

Gems, rocks and a fossil

Maine’s geology gives it two related symbols. Tourmaline, found in pockets in coarse granite rock called pegmatite, became the state mineral in 1971; Maine’s finest specimens include “watermelon” tourmaline, pink inside a green rind. In 2023 granitic pegmatite itself became the state rock. The state fossil, Pertica quadrifaria, is an early land plant that grew about six feet tall roughly 390 million years ago, one of the largest land plants of its time. Its fossils were found in 1968 in Baxter State Park, near Mount Katahdin.

A Maine menu

Maine is famous for its food, and its symbols show it. The wild blueberry, harvested from late July to early September, traditionally with a hand rake, became the state berry in 1991. In 2011 a single law made blueberry pie the state dessert and the whoopie pie, two soft cakes around a creamy filling, the state treat. Pure Maine maple syrup is the official sweetener and the Maine lobster the state crustacean. Moxie, a bittersweet soda first sold in 1884 as a “nerve food,” is the official soft drink and has its own festival each July in Lisbon Falls.

Ships and songs

The schooner Bowdoin, the state vessel, was built at East Boothbay in 1921 for the Arctic explorer Donald B. MacMillan, who sailed it more than 300,000 miles on 26 northern voyages. In World War II the Navy used it to help set up airfields in Greenland. Maine has an official state song, “State of Maine Song” (1937), an official march, “The Dirigo March” (2012), a state ballad, “Ballad of the 20th Maine” (2019), about the Maine regiment at Gettysburg, and even a state song of the 21st century, “My Sweet Maine” (2021).

The main symbols

The flag, the chickadee and the pine cone and tassel each have their own page. Commercial use of the state seal requires the governor’s written permission, so it is described here but not shown.

2 1820s 1850s 1880s 1 1 1910s 1 1 1 1940s 1 3 1970s 3 4 3 2000s 7 6 2020s
Official symbols adopted per decade. The busiest decade was the 2010s, with seven.

Flag, seal, song, motto and nickname

Animals

Plants and fungi

Earth and sky

Food and drink

Songs, words and language

Culture and history

Government emblems

Places and institutions

Questions about Maine's symbols

What is the Maine state animal?
The moose, adopted in 1979. Maine also has a state cat, the Maine coon, and since 2025 a state dog, the Seppala Siberian sleddog.
What is the Maine state soft drink?
Moxie, adopted in 2005. It was created in 1884 by Dr. Augustin Thompson, a native of Union, Maine, and first sold as a medicinal "nerve food."
Is the whoopie pie Maine's state dessert?
No, it is the state treat. Blueberry pie made with wild Maine blueberries is the state dessert; both were adopted in 2011.
What is Maine's state fossil?
Pertica quadrifaria, an early land plant about 390 million years old, found in 1968 in Baxter State Park near Mount Katahdin.
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