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Turkey facts

  • Silly turkeyA young turkey is called a poult
  • A male turkey is a stag and a female is a hen
  • The domestic turkey originates in Mexico and was brought over by explorers in the 1500s
  • Domesticated turkeys can’t fly, but wild turkeys can fly at speeds of up to 55 miles per hour
  • The fleshy growth on a turkey’s neck is called a wattle
  • Male turkeys also have a fleshy appendage which hangs down from the nose called a snood. When a stag is feeling amorous, his wattle and snood become bright red
  • Roast turkey was the first meal eaten on the moon by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin