Turkey truth
Here are a few things to know about the feathered beast.
TURKEY FACTS:
* One of the first ancient cities to use the name Philadelphia was in what is present-day Turkey. The city now is called Alasehir.
* Philadelphia's own Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey, not the bald eagle, to be the national bird. He once wrote that the turkey, "though a little vain and silly," is "a bird of courage."
* Turkeys can fly.
* Turkeys sleep in trees at night.
* A turkey's diet consists mainly of seeds, insects and nuts.
* The snood on a turkey is the bit of red flesh that grows from a turkey's forehead over its beak. The wattle is the fleshy red bit under a turkey's chin.
* The wild turkey is native to North America and can be found in every state except Alaska.
* Even if you don't spot the Wild Turkey of West Philly, you could head over to the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge in Tinicum, which has more than 300 species of birds, including more than six dozen turkeys. The refuge leads a guided birdwalk every Saturday and Sunday.
- Stephanie Farr