New Brunswick hunters will be able to shoot wild turkeys this year for the first time, Natural Resources Minister Mike Holland says.

Holland said a potential turkey hunt was one of the first items on his agenda when he was appointed minister in 2018, and he feels enough groundwork has been laid to have a hunt.

A two-week hunt will take place in May in five wildlife management zones of the province.

"I've been talking about that since shortly after taking office that I was committed to seeing a management strategy implemented for wild turkeys in 2020," said Holland, who was the vice-president of the Canadian Wild Turkey Federation.

"Of course, the spring is the ideal time to be able to implement that."

Anyone receiving a tag would also need to complete a training course on turkey hunting. (Joe MacDonald/CBC)

Four hundred tags will be issued on a draw basis, with the draw taking place soon.

Only bearded, mature, adult male turkeys can be hunted.

Jim Martin, vice-president of the Charlotte Country chapter of the Canadian Wild Turkey Federation, said that in meetings with the minister he was told the hunt would take place in zones 10, 15, 16, 17 and 20, an area that would stretch from Grand Falls south to the Bay of Fundy and include areas north of Fredericton.

Any New Brunswick resident can apply for the draw, even those who don't live in zones that allow turkey hunting. For this season at least, there will be no non-resident permits.

Anyone receiving a tag will also need to complete a training course on turkey hunting.

Born to be wild?

The hunt has been sought by provincial hunters since sightings of the birds increased in recent years.

At the same time, there have been concerns the bird numbers have been artificially raised by the introduction of domestic turkeys to the wild. These turkeys can't survive in winter climates.

Last November, the New Brunswick Bird Records Committee voted to add wild turkeys to the province's official bird list, which meant the province now had an established population.

But the committee only did so for counties bordering Maine.

Turkeys likely raised in captivity are showing up in various backyards and some suspect it is no accident. 0:59

"The wild turkey is now a non-native resident, with a self-sustaining population, in the western counties of New Brunswick bordering Maine," said the committee in the minutes of their November meeting.

"The status of isolated populations of wild turkey outside those counties remains unclear."

The May hunt will include the Minto and Chipman areas, both in Queens County, which doesn't border Maine.

Holland said the origin of the turkeys is irrelevant.

"Regardless of what the origin of the birds in the Minto and Chipman area was, there's a significant population there and therefore needs to be considered in the management program as well."

Graham Forbes, a biologist at the University of New Brunswick who ran a project trying to determine the habitat of turkeys in the province, said the provincial government would have enough information to conduct a small, trial hunt.

Natural Resources Minister Mike Holland says he's long been committed to getting a hunt going in 2020. (Kirk Pennell/CBC)

"Seeing what the success rate will be, how much interest will be, how well the animal's populations rebound the following year," Forbes said.

"I'd definitely say they know enough about where the animals are most abundant."

There are already turkey hunts in neighbouring Quebec and Maine.

Talking turkey

Holland said the goal is to have a sustainable turkey hunt as a permanent addition to the hunting calendar.

Jim Wilson, a member of the bird records committee, said their work looking at the turkey population preceded the election of the current natural resource minister, and that the committee took no position on the prospect of a hunt, but he's not surprised a hunt was announced.

"I'm really not sure how many wild turkeys we have in the province of New Brunswick, but there certainly are quite a number," said Wilson.

"Certainly, numbers in the thousands."

Jim Wilson, a member of the bird records committee, said there are 'quite a number' of turkeys in the province. (Shane Fowler/CBC)

Holland did not have a specific number for the turkey population but also said it would be in the thousands.

He also said neighbouring Maine had a hunt with a smaller population.

"When Maine embarked upon this process, they drew about 400 tags on a significantly smaller population than we have," said Holland.

"They were able to register and tag eight birds, or nine birds out of that 400 tags. … These are one of the most wary critters in the forest to pursue."

Graham Forbes, a biologist at the University of New Brunswick who ran a project trying to determine the habitat of turkeys in the province, said the provincial government would have enough information to conduct a small, trial hunt. (Shane Fowler, CBC)

Martin said the bird can become relatively tame around humans when a jurisdiction doesn't have a hunt, but this changes one the turkeys realize they are targets.

"Turkeys are a very challenging game bird to hunt," he said.

Forbes said his project was not set up to determine the provincial turkey population, but the proposed hunting areas match the habitat determined in his study.

"Those areas that are suggested for where the hunt could occur do fit where we've got relatively higher numbers of sightings from our mapping project," said Forbes.

Holland said more information on the draw will be released "within a few weeks."