Turkey: Turkeys in Pre-Columbian America

The turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) likely originated north of Rio Balsas, Mexico. In pre-Columbian times, wild turkeys were plentiful from Honduras to the eastern coast of North America, but Native American groups were widely divergent in their approach to wild turkeys. The Tonkawa of Texas, for example, caught turkeys for food and had a special turkey dance. The Cheyenne, however, refused to eat turkey because they believed that the bird was cowardly. Chiricahua and Mescalero Apaches did not consume them because turkeys ate insects. Other Native American groups, such as the Kiowa, Comanche, and Papago, refused to eat them but did use turkey feathers for decoration and specific ceremonies. Many Native American groups refused to eat turkey well into the twentieth century.