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South Dakota state symbols

South Dakota has 24 official state symbols, most of them set out in Chapter 1-6 of the state's codified laws. The oldest are the seal and motto of 1889, from a design first proposed at the 1885 constitutional convention; the newest is the traditional flute, the state's indigenous musical instrument since 2022. Food symbols include kuchen, fry bread and chislic, the official state nosh.

24 official designations · every law checked October 23, 2026

Flower, bird and animal

The pasque flower became the state flower in 1903, along with its own motto, “I Lead,” a nod to its early bloom; the secretary of state says no other state floral emblem has a motto. The ring-necked pheasant, an Asian bird first released successfully in Spink County in 1908, became the state bird in 1943, and the coyote the state animal in 1949. In 1947 the Legislature named the Black Hills spruce the state tree, noting that its very name identifies the state.

Stones, grass and soil

In 1966 South Dakota named two stones: rose quartz, found near Custer in the 1880s and mined in the southern Black Hills, as the state mineral stone, and the Fairburn agate, named for the town where it was first found and prized for its thin, sharply contrasting bands, as the state gemstone. Western wheatgrass, a long-lived grass found across the state and nicknamed bluestem wheatgrass for its bluish leaves, became the state grass in 1970, and Houdek, a deep prairie loam used for both cropland and rangeland, the state soil in 1990.

Fish, bees and a dinosaur

The honey bee became the state insect in 1978, recognizing the importance of honey production to the farm economy, and the walleye, the fish South Dakota anglers pursue most, the state fish in 1982. Triceratops became the state fossil in 1988; a skeleton found in Harding County in 1927 is on display at the Museum of Geology of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City.

Gold, fiddles and rodeo

Black Hills gold, jewelry with grape-and-leaf designs in green, rose and yellow gold, became the state jewelry in 1988; the law notes that courts have ruled the name may be used only for jewelry made in the Black Hills. The fiddle became the state instrument in 1989, rodeo the state sport in 2003 and the traditional flute the state indigenous musical instrument in 2022.

Food and drink

South Dakota’s food symbols reflect the people who settled it. Milk, from a major state industry, is the official drink. Kuchen, a German-Russian pastry of sweet dough with a custard filling, often topped with fruit, became the state dessert in 2000. Fry bread, long part of Native American family meals, fairs and powwows, became the state bread in 2005, and chislic the state nosh in 2018.

2 1880s 1 1900s 1920s 4 1940s 3 1960s 2 5 1980s 2 3 2000s 1 1 2020s
Official symbols adopted per decade. The busiest decade was the 1980s, with five.

Flag, seal, song, motto and nickname

Animals

Plants and fungi

Earth and sky

Food and drink

Culture and history

Questions about South Dakota's symbols

What is the South Dakota state bird?
The ring-necked pheasant, adopted in 1943. It is native to Asia and was first released successfully in South Dakota in 1908.
What is the South Dakota state animal?
The coyote, adopted in 1949.
What is the South Dakota state flower?
The American pasque flower, which comes with its own motto, "I Lead."
What is chislic?
South Dakota's official state nosh, designated in 2018.
What is Black Hills gold?
South Dakota's state jewelry, adopted in 1988, made with grape-and-leaf designs in green, rose and yellow gold. The law notes that courts have ruled the name may be used only for jewelry made in the Black Hills.
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