ND fall turkey season will have fewer licenses

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota's Game and Fish Department is making 4,145 licenses available for the wild turkey hunting season this fall, a drop of 10 percent from 2011.

The reduction is due to a decline in the turkey population over the past several years, when harsh winters were the norm.

“Even though last winter was beneficial to our turkey population, we don't know what turkey production will be like, and the number of breeding adult birds is lower than in past years,” Upland Game Management Supervisor Stan Kohn said. “If turkey production is exceptionally good this spring, an additional 1,300 licenses may be used early this fall in specific hunting units.”

The fall turkey season opens Oct. 13 and runs through Jan. 13, 2013. July 5 is the deadline to apply for a license.

An experimental hunting season will continue at the federal Northern Great Plains Research Lab at Mandan. Up to 30 licenses will be available. An experimental turkey bow hunting season also will continue in the city limits of Bismarck to help reduce a growing population of wild turkeys in residential areas. Up to 25 licenses will be available.

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