Utah state bird.

Today I snapped some pictures of the California Gulls fighting over chips the kids were throwing out to them....then chasing them(the kids were not me).

This was the rowdiest of the bunch (I'll let you guess which one.)

I was surprised to learn that the seagull is the State Bird of Utah. Then I remembered this story.

The California gull, even without official status, was long considered the state bird of Utah due to its storied role as a protector of crops. It gained this reputation during the summer of 1848 when swarms of crickets attacked pioneer food supplies. It was reported that flocks of the birds arrived, settled in the "...half-ruined fields" and "gorged themselves" on the attacking crickets. It's often stated that the California gull was made the state bird in return for saving the settler's lives.

Thanks for checking out my journal!