- Fact 2 - Turkeys got their name
from the incorrect belief that they came originally from Turkey!
- Fact 3 - Gallinaceous birds are
described as heavy-bodied ground-feeding domestic or game birds
including the turkey, grouse, quail, pheasant and Chickens
- Fact 4 - The Mexican wild turkey is
now considered a variety of the northern species (var.
Mexicana). Its tall feathers and coverts are tipped with white
instead of brownish chestnut, and its flesh is white.
- Fact 5 - The Central American, or
ocellated, turkey (M. ocellata) is more elegantly colored than
the common species
- Fact 6 - The Australian, or native,
turkey is a bustard (Choriotis australis) - a large,
ground-nesting bird
- Fact 7 - The turkey is the largest
game bird in North America
- Fact 8 - Wild Turkeys stats and
facts
- Weight: 25 ponds
- Height: 3 feet
- Habitat:
Wooded areas with plenty of trees
- Lifespan: 13 years
- Wingspans: 1.5–1.8 metres (4.9–5.9
ft)
- Diet: Turkeys eat insects, acorns,
berries, buds and small reptiles
- Fact 9 - Turkeys have a distinctive
fleshy wattle that hangs from the underside of the beak
- Fact 10 - Female Turkeys are
smaller and much less colorful than the males
- Fact 11 - "Heritage turkeys" and
"wild turkeys" can fly
- Fact 12 - The Californian Turkey (Meleagris
californica) became extinct about 10,000 years ago
- Fact 13 - Benjamin Franklin
suggested making the wild turkey, not the Bald Eagle, the
national bird of the United States
- Fact 14 - The turkey is the
favorite meal for Christmas and Thanksgiving celebrations
- Fact 15 - The collective name for a group
of turkeys is a
Rafter
- Fact 16 - Male turkeys are called Toms
- Fact 17 - Female turkeys are called Hens
- Fact 18 - The names given to babies are
Poults or goblets
- Fact 19 - Turkeys grunt, make a
"gobble gobble sound"
- Fact 20 - The Wattle is the flap of
skin under the turkey's chin
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