Animals eaten at the First Thanksgiving coloring pages

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is my free cooring pages blog. 

Today, I am posting some pictures I drew of the various animals that may have been served at the First Thanksgiving Feast. Yes, it includes turkey... but there were so many other forms of meat!

Wild Turkey & Passenger Pigeon

Back in 1621, in the area around Plymouth Colony, there WERE turkeys. But there were also Passenger Pigeons.  Sadly, now Passenger Pigeons are extinct... Was it the Pilgrim's fault?  Turkeys are a bird native to North America. So were Passenger Pigeons. Turkeys are found from Southern Canada to Guatemala. The largest wild turkey ever taken weighed over 37 lbs. 

Canadian Geese on a River

Canadian Geese were probably part of the first Thanksgiving Feast.  Canadian Geese, also called "Honkers," are found all over North America from Northern Canada to Northern Mexico. Waterfowl are listed as part of the first Thanksgiving Feast. 

Mallard Ducks on a Pond

Mallard Ducks are a very common duck in North America. They live from Northern Canada to Southern Mexico. The drakes have a beautiful green head that really stands out.

Whitetail Deer at an Overlook

Whitetail deer... or white-tailed deer... or white-tail deer are a common species of deer. They are found from Canada to northern South America. They were and still are the most common deer found near Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts.  The Wampanoag tribe of Native Americans brought 5 deer to the first Thanksgiving feast. So venison was on the menu... most certainly more so than turkey.

Swan, Grebes, Ducks, and Coots on a Pond

Swans were eaten by Native Americans, as were ducks and probably coots. Coots are a smaller, dark-feathered waterfowl. Grebes were probably hunted by Native Americans in the past. In the USA, Grebes are protected due to some species of Grebes almost being wiped out by European Americans.  Grebe feathers are very soft and were used in hats, etc. Notice that the grebe in the drawing is a mother with her grebelet on her back. By the way, I think swans are the most beautiful of all birds, so I could never hunt them. But I will also state that hunting organizations like Ducks Unlimited have many of the best conservationists for waterfowl. Growing up by a reservoir, we even had ducks and geese for Thanksgiving dinner some years. Nowadays, I never hunt, but I do love to fish for Trout. In fact, fish were also probably part of the first Thanksgiving Feast. 

NOTE: These drawings are found in printable form by clicking on the button labeled "Holidays" and then scrolling down to the Thanksgiving section. Have fun coloring these "tasty" animals.