Turkeys Terrify Massachusetts by Lossie Hudspeth

In Brookline Massachusetts the turkey's are taking Thanksgiving back. The aggressive birds have been attacking nearby pedestrians in flocks. Many victims of the attacks say that it is because these Turkey's don't want to become a holiday meal. Although that does make for an interesting story, the real reason behind the attacks is due to the time of year. Mating season. The wild turkey is native to North America and was discovered by the first European settlers. The region that is most common for these large nesting birds is in the forests of the Appalachian mountains. Settlers were familiar with old world birds such as guinea and peafowl type, but not quite so familiar with the new world turkey. The population of this bird would only decline after the arrival of the settlers and not until WWII would it see an increase in numbers. The largest decline in numbers was during the Great Depression. Everyone was starving and surviving off of little to nothing, so it would make sense that these birds were either common meals or dying off because of a change in the ecosystem. Either way, these birds have played a huge part in both our traditional and economic outlook for America. What would be different about Thanksgiving both from a traditional and an economic standpoint, had we not chosen the turkey as a holiday icon?

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