These wild turkeys came to my house on January 12, 2013.
These wild turkeys came to my house on January 12, 2013.
These wild turkeys came to my house on November 3, 2012.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0042630
Thornton EK, Emery KF, Steadman DW, Speller C, Matheny R, et al. (2012)
Earliest Mexican Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) in the Maya Region:
Implications for Pre-Hispanic Animal Trade and the Timing of Turkey
Domestication. PLoS ONE 7(8): e42630. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0042630
Late Preclassic (300 BC-AD 100) turkey remains identified at the archaeological site of El Mirador (Petén, Guatemala) represent the earliest evidence of the Mexican turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) in the ancient Maya world. Archaeological, zooarchaeological, and ancient DNA evidence combine to confirm the identification and context. The natural pre-Hispanic range of the Mexican turkey does not extend south of central Mexico, making the species non-local to the Maya area where another species, the ocellated turkey (Meleagris ocellata), is indigenous. Prior to this discovery, the earliest evidence of M. gallopavo in the Maya area dated to approximately one thousand years later. The El Mirador specimens therefore represent previously unrecorded Preclassic exchange of animals from northern Mesoamerica to the Maya cultural region. As the earliest evidence of M. gallopavo found outside its natural geographic range, the El Mirador turkeys also represent the earliest indirect evidence for Mesoamerican turkey rearing or domestication. The presence of male, female and sub-adult turkeys, and reduced flight morphology further suggests that the El Mirador turkeys were raised in captivity. This supports an argument for the origins of turkey husbandry or at least captive rearing in the Preclassic.
This wild turkey came to my house on November 17, 2011.
These wild turkeys came to my house on November 14, 2010 for a drink from the bird bath. Once again, it is a hen and chicks, but in August there were 2 chicks and now there are three. It was cold.
These wild turkeys came to my house on August 8, 2010. It was very hot and dry, so the hen showed her chicks how to jump up on the bird bath and get a drink.
These wild turkeys came to my house on November 11, 2009.
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2010/01/21/0909724107.abstract
Ancient mitochondrial DNA analysis reveals complexity of indigenous
North American turkey domestication
Camilla F. Speller,
Brian M. Kemp,
Scott D. Wyatt,
Cara Monroe,
William D. Lipe,
Ursula M. Arndt, and
Dongya Y. Yanga
Although the cultural and nutritive importance of the turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) to precontact Native Americans and contemporary people worldwide is clear, little is known about the domestication of this bird compared to other domesticates. Mitochondrial DNA analysis of 149 turkey bones and 29 coprolites from 38 archaeological sites (200 BC-AD 1800) reveals a unique domesticated breed in the precontact Southwestern United States. Phylogeographic analyses indicate that this domestic breed originated from outside the region, but rules out the South Mexican domestic turkey (Meleagris gallopavo gallopavo) as a progenitor. A strong genetic bottleneck within the Southwest turkeys also reflects intensive human selection and breeding. This study points to at least two occurrences of turkey domestication in precontact North America and illuminates the intensity and sophistication of New World animal breeding practices.
These wild turkeys came to my house on November 23, 2008.
This wild turkey came to my house on October 26, 2008.
These wild turkeys came to my house in Norman, Oklahoma, USA on 21 November of 2004. It was a dark rainy morning.
These wild turkeys came to my house in Norman, Oklahoma, USA on 27 October of 2006.
These wild turkeys came to my house in Norman, Oklahoma, USA on the 2nd of December in 2006.
Copyright 2004-2011, John Moyer, all rights reserved.