Turkey Science

Turkeys, we all know these tasty birds from the Thanksgiving table but did you know that they aren’t as dumb as we have come to believe. They are actually very smart birds. In the course of my studying of Earth’ s history I found out some facts about these fascinating creatures.

DID YOU KNOW:

that there was a myth that Turkey’s would drown because they always looked up when it rained, but a scientist found out that Turkeys have a nervous condition that makes them cock their heads upwards and hold that position for a couple of minutes.
there are 7 million wild turkeys living in the United States
Some people believe that once you eat turkey meat you get sleepy but some scientist have found that there are other factors in the mix. They say that there are amino acids in our bodies that block the effects of Tryptophan. The other factors in the mix are lack of sleep, alcohol, digesting large amounts of food and watching football.
turkeys are the only native breed of poultry native to the western hemisphere.
Domestic turkeys can’t fly. As we all found out in the classic episode of “WKRP in Cincinnati” when they tried to release turkeys from a helicopter. Wild turkeys on the other hand can fly and have been know to sleep in trees.
One of the best known turkey facts is that Benjamin Franklin wanted to make the turkey the national bird but was voted down in favor of the Bald eagle.

When you sit down to the wonderful thanksgiving dinner with your family be sure to thank the turkeys.

signing off until next time