Farm | Turkey

Turkeys are relative newcomers to domestication. Wild turkeys range from southern Canada to Mexico, but their domestication occurred in northern Mexico around 2000 years ago. It’s possible that a second domestication event occurred in the southwest United States as well. In any case, Spanish explorers found domesticated turkeys among the Aztecs and Pueblo people. Some of these birds were returned to Europe, where the domesticated breeds spread. Archeologists trying to discover the origin and extent of domestication refer to turkey pens, turkey bones with healed injuries, and significant deposits of turkey egg shells, all signs that animals have been raised and cared for by humans.