5 terrific turkey facts
Gobble up some facts about these funny looking birds whilst you gobble down your festive meal.
Female turkeys don’t gobble!
Don’t be disappointed if the turkey at the petting zoo refuses to gobble — it’s probably a female, which is called a hen. Male turkeys are called gobblers, because they are the only ones that can make that adorable gobbling sound. Each male turkey has his own unique gobbling “technique,” which he combines with strutting to attract potential mates. Female turkeys communicate through clucks and small, chirp-like noises
They blush
Gender can be determined from the shape of their poop!
Males have beards!
An adult gobbler weighs 16 to 22 pounds on average, has a beard of modified feathers on his breast that reaches seven inches or more long, and has sharp spurs on his legs for fighting. A hen is smaller, weighing around 8 to 12 pounds, and has no beard or spurs. Both genders have a snood (a dangly appendage on the face), wattle (the red dangly bit under the chin) and only a few feathers on the head.
Not able to fly is a myth!
Turkeys can run at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour and wild turkeys can fly as fast as 55 miles per hour in short bursts. However, domestic turkeys are unable to fly as they are too weighed down by their own meat.
