Turkeys will have 3,500 feathers at maturity. Turkeys have been bred to have white feathers. White feathers have no spots under the skin when plucked. Most turkey feathers are composted. Turkey skins are tanned and used to make cowboy boots and belts.
Turkeys have a long, red, fleshy area called a snood that grows from the forehead over the bill.
The fleshy growth under a turkey's throat is called a waddle. Turkey eggs hatch in 28 days. North Carolina leads the United States in turkey production. Two hundred seventy six million turkeys will be raised in the United States in 2000.