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Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo). Open woodlands.
Run away! Run away! Wild Turkeys travel in groups as large as 60, feeding in open areas close to the protection of a nearby woods. Moving into the open to feed despite the inherent danger, deer and turkeys take advantage of the higher nutrition provided by plants growing in full sunlight.
The similarity of appearance of a flock of turkeys and a herd of dinosaurs is not coincidental . . . birds are the descendants of dinosaurs and the average size of dinosaurs was that of a turkey. The loss of heavy, dense teeth moved the grinding of seeds and nuts to the gizzard, closer to the center of gravity, allowed the reduction of the tail that served, among other functions, as a balance to the head and neck. And, being bipedal is a characteristic of birds inherited from their dinosaurian ancestors. Enjoy your Thanksgiving meal of dinosaur! Mammals rule!
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