Deniz Carp - Turkey

Çatalhöyük, located in the southern Anatolia region of Turkey, was one of the largest settlements of the 7th millennium BC. The site covered 12.8 hectares and is the best preserved Neolithic site ever found. Lacking streets to the individual houses, access was gained through the use of ladders and by walking across the rooftops.

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Cyprinus carpio yilmaz - The Deniz carp is one of four sub-species of the common carp found along the coast of Turkey. The common carp is native to Asia, but has spread throughout the world aside from the polar regions. It is considered an invasive species in most of the areas where it has been introduced. The carp primarily grubs along the muddy bottom searching for food by inhaling a mouthful of sediment and spitting out what it does not want. This feeding behavior can be disruptive to delicate marine ecosystems.

Bitter Apple - Turkey

Citrullus colocynthis - The bitter apple is a desert vine whose fruit, although small, resembles a watermelon. It is a hardy plant able to tolerate various patterns of precipitation, altitudes ranging from sea level to 1,500 meters, and soils ranging from sandy loam to sub-desert soil. The fruit is smooth, cylindrical in shape, bitter tasting, and averages between 5 to 10 centimeters in diameter. Local populations often grind the bitter apple seeds into flour for making bread.

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In 1299, the Oghuz Turks, under the leadership of Osman Bey, founded what eventual became the Ottoman Empire. Rooted in Northwestern Anatolia as a small emirate, the Ottoman Empire reached its apex under Suleiman the Magnificent during a reign lasting from 1520 to 1566. The empire stretched from eastern North Africa to the Caspian Sea and from the gates of Vienna to Mecca. When Suleiman died in 1566, he left an empire stretching over three continents with a population of 15 million people.