# What is a chicken's natural habitat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 19, 2010, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700 "2010-10-19T21:00:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/21 "2010-10-20T14:39:19Z")
> [@dangermom](#): > > (In fact a neighbor did just that, and last Thanksgiving we had wild turkey.) My uncle has Wild Turkey every Thanksgiving. Finishes off most of the bottle in fact. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/22 "2010-10-20T15:19:42Z")
Key West has a large population of feral chickens; they seem to cope quite well. ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/23 "2010-10-20T15:29:50Z")
I’ve seen a lot of wild turkeys in the woods. While not great flyers, these birds are not totally earthbound. They can fly enough to nest in trees, cross ravines, top small cliffs etc. They are also pretty well camouflaged, have great eyesight, and vanish, seemingly into thin air, at will. They are a challenge for human hunters, and probably as much so for natural predators. They are adaptable enough that they range over the entire lower 48 states, and into Canada and Mexico as well. Sparrows and no other bird I can think of range so widely. Fun Fact: Ben Franklin advocated for making the turkey the national bird. ---
**Author:** ![FluffyBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@FluffyBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FluffyBob)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/24 "2010-10-20T18:43:33Z")
There are quite a few mostly flightless, shockingly stupid, native North American fowl that are pretty darn close to chickens functionally. I have walked right up to Ptarmigan and Grouse doing their ‘I am not moving so you can’t see me’ routine’ and could easily have just picked them up. They will even squawk worriedly! People here call them prairie or road chickens sometimes. Some cowboy i was working with once swerved to hit one and then got out to show me the ‘neat’ trick of pulling the breast meat off by the wings. He then nonchalantly threw the two beautiful chicken breasts over his shoulder. We could have at least made some manifold chicken. I guess the true Prairie Chicken is extirpated in Alberta though. I had fire roasted native chicken in the Philippines one time. It was seasoned with wood ash salt and frickin yummy. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2010, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/25 "2010-10-21T02:51:26Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > But most importantly, what do junglefowl taste like? Original, of course. That “Extra Crispy” stuff is a more-recent invention. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2010, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/26 "2010-10-21T04:30:46Z")
My friend has some chickens, and while they are technically “domesticated” (she feeds them!) they totally prefer to sleep in her magnolia trees instead of the chicken coop. Last time I visited, I spent most of the time taking pictures of and gazing at the chickens in the trees. I felt very “city” that week. [There’s a classic Sesame Street song about it](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tvv5gL1pGb0) ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/27 "2010-10-21T19:42:46Z")
> [@dangermom](#): > > Yeah, our local wild turkeys aren’t exactly wily. They wander around my parents’ neighborhood all the time, and you could just shoot one out the window pretty easily. (In fact a neighbor did just that, and last Thanksgiving we had wild turkey.) I have to ask: how WAS it? My parents are moving to an area where wild turkeys are somewhat prevalent, which is about as fascinating to me as to someone who had never seen snow before. We saw a few houses yesterday and there were almost a dozen just roaming in the yard! Surely they would stay away if the dog were around, but what if he were to catch one (not inconceivable if they don’t fly well/much). ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2010, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700/28 "2010-10-21T20:38:34Z")
> [@](#): > > What is a chicken’s natural habitat? Kentucky. The live, secretly, in the spice bushes. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-chickens-natural-habitat/557700.md?page=1)