"Unprecedented" study to focus on North Dakota's wild turkeys

(Fargo, ND) -- An "unprecedented" study will soon be launched focusing on the wild turkey population in North Dakota.

"There's projects like this happening a lot in the Southeast and stuff like that but nothing really North Dakota specific so it will be us a good understanding of how to better manage this resource," said Clayton Lenk, District Biologist for the National Wild Turkey Federation. 

The group is teaming up with UND and the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. We're told the study is aimed at better understanding the survival and productivity of hens in the state as part of the state's "translocation" program. Wild turkeys can sometimes be a nuisance to farming or ranching operations, and they'll be moved form one part of the state to another. The study begins in the winter and will take two years to complete.