Wild turkeys, New York
© John Cancalosi/Alamy
Happy Thanksgiving! - Stuffed with gratitude
Today, many Americans will spend time with friends and family, giving thanks and enjoying what some consider to be the best meal of the year. The tradition dates back to English colonists who celebrated the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1621. Their treacherous journey from England the year before and their first winter claimed half of the colonists, and the rest might have died too if not for the generosity of the Wampanoag people. To celebrate their first corn harvest and thank the Native Americans who helped them, the colonists held a three-day feast.
The centerpiece of today's feast for many will be the turkey, which wasn't part of early celebrations. Turkey only became a tradition in the mid-1800s after President Abraham Lincoln and writer Sarah Hale popularized the holiday and meal as a way to heal post-Civil War America. Wild turkeys like the toms (males) seen in today's image are native to North America, where they have been evolving for 20 million years. Hunted to near extinction in the 19th century, the wild turkey population has rebounded to more than 7 million birds today, thanks to conservation programs.