Meleagrididae

views updated

Meleagrididae (turkeys; class Aves, order Galliformes) A family of very large gamebirds which are dark, with a green and bronze sheen, and have a bare, blue or red head with wattles. The wings are barred with white, the tail broad and rounded, the legs long and spurred. Turkeys are gregarious and terrestrial, and are found in wooded country. They feed on vegetable matter, and breed on the ground. Meleagris gallopus is the wild ancestor of the domestic turkey, with characteristic bare, red head wattles, and a ‘gobbling’ call. There are two genera, with two species, found in N. and Central America.

More From encyclopedia.com