Meleagris

Turkeys are large, heavyset galliforms in the genusMeleagris, indigenous to the Americas. They are among the largest birds in their native ranges, as well as being one of the heaviest birds in the order Galliformes. There are two extant turkey species: the wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) of Southern, Central and Eastern North America, and the ocellated turkey (Meleagris ocellata) of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Males of both species have a distinctive singular fleshy wattle, called a snood, that hangs from the base of the culmen. Like with other phasianines, the male is bigger and sports fancier plumage than the female.