- Benjamin Franklin proposed that the American wild turkey be the national bird.
- 46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving
- The wild turkey is native to northern Mexico and the eastern United States.
- The turkey was domesticated in Mexico and taken to Spain in the 1500's, where it was selectively bred with European turkeys.
- Commercial and heritage turkey breeds all resulted from crossing European breeds with American wild turkeys.
- Only about 30,000 heritage turkeys were raised in all of 2013, compared to the estimated 240 million commercial birds.
