Thanksgiving Turkey Trivia
Amaze your friends at Thanksgiving with your knowledge about America’s most popular bird. Use our Turkey Trivia and turkey facts to show off the depth of your knowledge. Without a doubt, you will amuse and amaze family and friends at the big feast.
Thanksgiving Turkey Trivia and Facts
- As far back as 1000 A.D., Native American Indians raised turkeys for food. Aztec Indians in Mexico were raising them as early as 200 B.C.
- Turkeys originally existed in the eastern US. and Mexico.
- Turkeys are actually a type of pheasant.
- The heaviest turkey weighed in at 86 pounds. Please pass the stuffing!
- Turkeys have excellent and a wide range of vision, about 270 degrees.
- Mature turkeys have about 3,500 feathers. I wonder who took the time to count them?
- The turkey industry grosses over $1 billion a year.
- The Average American consumes over 15 pounds of Turkey per year.
- Americans will cook over 45 million turkeys on Thanksgiving Day.
- 235 million turkeys were raised in 2014. The record is 302.7 million in 1996.
- Over 770 million pounds of cranberries are consumed on Thanksgiving.
- Turkey, like poultry, is lower in cholesterol than beef and many other types of meat. Dark meat (thigh, legs,) contains more fat and cholesterol than white meat. So, that’s why dark meat tastes so good!
- Male Turkeys are called “Toms” or “Gobblers”, female turkeys are called “Hens” and baby turkeys are called “poults”.
Did you Know? Benjamin Franklin argued that Turkey should be our National Bird. He stated that it was more respectable and a native of North America.
More Turkey Facts and Trivia
- In 1947, the first Presidential pardon was ceremoniously given to a turkey. It is now an annual event.
- People who do not like turkey enjoy countless alternatives. They dine on everything including prime rib, pork, chicken, duck, and even seafood. Tacos anyone!?
- That long, loose skin that hangs down from a turkey’s neck is called a “wattle”.
- Turkey eggs are tan in color and speckled with brown. They are about twice as large as chicken eggs.
- Wild turkeys can fly 55 miles per hour, and run 25 miles per hour.
- In 1947, the first Presidential pardon was ceremoniously given to a turkey.
- The “Turkey Trot” was named after how turkeys walk…. in short, jerky steps.
- Sleepy after the big meal? Turkey contains an amino acid called “Tryptophan”. Tryptophan sets off a chemical chain reaction that calms you down and makes you sleepy.
- At the first Thanksgiving feast in 1621, the pilgrims did not serve pumpkin pie, Rather, they made a stewed pumpkin.
- The Native American name for turkey is “Firkee”.
- The wishbone is a tradition of Thanksgiving. Allow the wishbone to dry. Then, two people grasp each end of the wishbone. After making a silent wish, they pull it away. Whoever gets the joint portion, gets their wish.
- You can tell the sex of a turkey from its poop. Males form a spiral on the ground, while females leave “J” shaped poop. I’m sure you wanted to know this.
- Mature turkeys have over 3,500 feathers.
Even More Turkey Trivia and Facts
- How’s that taste? Old Toms are better tasting than young toms. Conversely, young hens taste better than old hens.
- In 2016, there were over 100,000 phone calls to the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line. The average call time was 3 minutes, and 8 seconds.
- Only Tom turkeys “gobble”.
- Please pass the gravy. Plan on serving 1/3 to 1/2 cup of gravy per person for Thanksgiving dinner. Surprisingly, this is more than the normal gravy consumption when eating turkey at other meals.
- Native Americans considered turkeys to be weak. As a result, they would only eat them when food was scarce, or in times of famine.
- According to Butterball, an unopened frozen turkey can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 years.
- The wishbone is a tradition of Thanksgiving. Allow the wishbone to dry. Then, two people grasp each end of the wishbone. After making a silent wish, they pull it away. Whoever gets the joint portion, gets their wish.
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