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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Senate backs Idaho giant salamander as state amphibian

The Senate has voted 33-1 in favor of HB 1, to designate the Idaho giant salamander as the official state amphibian. The vote sends the House-passed bill to the governor’s desk, and marks a big victory in a five-year effort by Boise 8th grader Ilah Hickman, who drew support for her bill from school children and experts around the state. “She has become a role model to kids around the state,” Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking, D-Boise, told the Senate. “This young lady is just amazing.” The new state symbol would join others including the state bird, the mountain bluebird; the state insect, the monarch butterfly; and the state fruit, the huckleberry.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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