TENNESSEE, the Volunteer State

STATE FLAG AND MORE COLORING AND ORIGAMI ACTIVITIES COMING SOON


Admission: 16th State (June 1, 1796)
Capital: Nashville

Nickname: The Volunteer State

State Motto: Agriculture and Commerce
State Song: My Homeland Tennessee by Neil Grayson Talor and Roy Lamont Smith

State Amphibian: Tennessee Cave Salamander
State Bird: Mockingbird
State Bird (Game Bird): Bobwhite Quail
State Butterfly: Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly
State Fish (Commercial): Channel Catfish
State Fish (Game Fish): Smallmouth Bass
State Flowers: Iris and Passion Flower
State Gem: Tennessee River Pearl
State Insects: Firefly, Honeybee & Ladybug
State Reptile: Eastern Box Turtle
State Trees: Tulip and Yellowwood
State Wild Animal: Raccoon

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Lady Bug-a-rama...Ladybug Origami and More...

Ladybug feeding on aphids. Photo by Greyson Orlando

The ladybug is the state insect of Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio and Tennessee. In Massachusetts, it was a group of second graders from Kennedy School in Franklin who petitioned to make the ladybug their state's official insect.


Why ladybugs so popular?

Farmers and gardeners know how aphids, mites and scales can damage plants by sucking the sap from them. Ladybugs are beneficial because both adults and larvae prey on these pests.

The most common species is the convergent ladybug, which can be recognized by the 13 spots on its red to orange wings. Convergent ladybug larva eat their weight in aphids every day, and adults eat up to 50 aphids a day. Its larger European cousin, the seven-spot ladybug, has an even bigger appetite, devouring up to 300 aphids every day.

Bug or Beetle?

Ladybugs, or ladybirds, are not bugs at all. They are actually beetles.

Bugs have needle-like mouths that they use like straws to puncture their food so they can suck out nectar, sap or animal fluids. Bugs may or may not have wings. If they do, their wings are thin, like membranes. Baby bugs look like mini adult bugs...without the wings.

Beetles have chewing mouth parts, and feed on a wide range of plants and animals. Adult bugs have hard forewings that cover and protect the thin, membranous hindwings. And beetles, unlike bugs, undergo a complete metamorphosis. Beetle larvae, which look very different from adults, must enter a pupal stage before it transforms itself into an adult with hard outer wings.

Ladybugs gather in Mill Valley, California.  Photo by Kristopher Anderson.

Fun Facts: 

• There are over 450 species of ladybugs in North America alone. Of these, two, the Mexican bean beetle and the squash beetle, feed on plants and are considered pests.

• Ladybugs spend the winter gathering in large groups beneath rocks, in leafy litter, or in hollowed trunks. In the spring they emerge to feed and find a place to lay their eggs.

Print and fold an Origami Ladybug:

Difficulty: Easy


Directions:

1.  Print and cut out Ladybug Origami along outer solid line.

2. With printed side facing down, fold in half diagonally as shown.

3a. Turn origami over.
3b. Fold wing down, as shown.
3c. Repeat on other side.

4. Turn origami over. Fold ladybug's head forward, as shown, then up, as shown.

5. Turn origami over. Fold corner of wing back, as shown.

6. Repeat on other side, folding corner of wing back. Finally, fold corner of abdomen back as shown.

More Ladybug Crafts:

The National Wildlife Federation's Ladybug Garden Rock:

Natural Suburbia's Knitted Ladybug Pattern:

©2010 Tammy Yee
All rights reserved.

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Iris Origami

The iris is the official state flower for Tennessee, and the official state wildflower for Louisiana (Louisiana iris) and Michigan (dwarf lake iris).

In Japan, the Iris Festival (Shobu no Sekku) is held each May in honor of this symbolic flower, the long leaves of which resemble the sharp blades of a sword.  For centuries it was customary to place iris leaves in a boy's bath to give him a martial spirit.

There more than 200 species of iris around the world, and although we often think of irises as brilliant purple flowers, they in fact come in a variety of colors. In fact, the name "iris" comes from the Greek word for rainbow.

Difficulty: Easy to Moderate


Directions:

1a. Print and cut out iris origami along outer solid lines.
1b. Fold along diagonal line A as shown.
1c. Fold in half again, along vertical line marked in red.






2a. Note diagonal line, marked in red.
2b. Fold up along diagonal line.
2c. Unfold.









3a, b & c. Carefully open upper "flap" along creases to form a diamond, as shown.











4a. Repeat steps 2 and 3 on the reverse side, so that both sides resemble diamonds.
4b & c. Fold along the red lines so that the corners meet at the center, as shown.







5a. Fold along red lines,
5b. toward the center so that your origami appears as shown. Repeat on the reverse side.







6. Fold right side of origami over so that the picture of the large flower petals is showing. Repeat on reverse side.









7. Fold inner petals down as shown.








©2010 Tammy Yee
All rights reserved.

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