Outdoor column: North Carolina’s Special Winter Visitors
It’s interesting how, as many of us “get on up” in years, we sometimes have a problem remembering some mundane fact, like an old friend’s first name. But, at the same time, something will trigger the synapses in our brain to recall a place, person or event that we haven’t seen in decades — and do so in vivid color and astonishing detail.
That sometimes happens to me around this time of year.
The event occurred on an early winter afternoon about fifty years ago in a duck blind in the Pamlico River near Nevil’s Creek. A frat brother and I had been putting brush on the wooden structure in preparation for the upcoming season and, as the sun hovered just above the horizon, called an end to our labor and sat back for a much-needed break.
At that point, something caught our attention. It was a large flock of tundra swans, flying so low it seemed we could almost reach up and touch them. As we sat there, mesmerized, the huge white birds passed directly overhead, their strong, slow wing beats propelling them toward some distant grain field to feed until returning to the river where they would raft up for the night. Their honking – more dog-like than avian – echoed across the watery expanse, seeming to celebrate the thousand-mile journey they had made to reach the North Carolina coastal plain. The memory and magic of that moment still gives me goose bumps after all these years.
Tundra swans (Cygnus columbianus) seem to have that effect on a lot of people. Native Americans, ancient Greeks, early explorers and others spoke of them with awe and reverence. Capt. Meriwether Lewis, of Lewis and Clark fame, called them “whistling swans” because of their unique and intriguing calls.
Part of the fascination with swans stems from those birds’ impressive structure. Standing almost four feet tall, with a wingspan that may be six feet or more, they often weigh up to 25 pounds. Their elegant appearance features all-white plumage (except in juveniles which may have some gray), black feet and bill, and a long, slender neck.
The tundra swan should not be confused with two other species found in North America – trumpeter and mute swans. The former are found only in the mid-west and western states, while the latter are mostly domesticated and non-migratory birds. Tundra swans, as their name might suggest, are very much migratory. They breed and nest on Arctic wetlands but, when things begin to freeze up in the fall,
congregate in large flocks and begin to migrate across Canada to the east and west. Then they follow a southerly route that, in the west, takes them into Nevada, Utah and California. The largest numbers, though, head east with a funnel-shaped migratory pattern that brings them down the Atlantic Flyway.
Some swans in the latter group winter in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia but the largest number, by far, concentrate in North Carolina. Each fall, approximately 65 to 75 thousand swans migrate to this state’s northeastern counties. When they arrive, they will have made a journey of as much as 3,000+ miles.
Tundra swans originally came to this region to find open water where our extensive lakes, sounds and rivers offered large resting areas as well as ample food in the form of sub-aquatic vegetation (SAVs), mollusks and other benthic organisms. In recent decades, however, as some of those traditional food sources have declined, the swans have adapted by visiting expansive grain fields. Apparently, the big birds’ flexibility has been paying off.
Each year, states along the east coast conduct surveys of all kinds of waterfowl. While there are typically fluctuations in population size and productivity because of weather changes and other factors, the Eastern Population of tundra swans has greatly increased over the last 40 years. Swans’ numbers and relative stability prompted the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), in conjunction with the National Fish and Wildlife Service (NFWS), in 1984 to begin a very limited and controlled hunting season for tundra swans. Virginia is the only other state on the east coast to have an open season.
According to the NCWRC, “Tundra swan hunting in North Carolina follows strict guidelines. A special permit/tag is required to hunt tundra swans, and a random draw of approximately 5,000 permits is conducted each year in early October. Successful permit holders are allowed to harvest one swan and the tag must be immediately affixed to the harvested bird. Permit holders are also required to fill out and return a questionnaire each year stating their hunting effort and success.”
Outdoorsmen who apply and get drawn for a swan hunting permit will find the best chances of bagging one in counties that constitute the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula. Between 85 and 95 percent of all the tundra swans in North Carolina each winter stop off there. Hyde, Tyrrell, Washington and neighboring counties host the vast majority of birds. That doesn’t mean a hunter can just slide his boat in
at any ramp, motor out and start blasting away. Those pursuing swans, like all waterfowl hunters, must have in their possession a valid state hunting license and Federal Duck Stamp. In addition, if they harvest a tundra swan they are required to have the all-important state-issued tag. The current swan season opened on Nov. 5, 2022 and closes on Jan. 31, 2023.
Also, hunters must make sure they are not on refuges where, as a conservation measure, waterfowl hunting is not allowed. Those are generally great spots, however, to observe and photograph swans. Right now is prime time to visit one of those places and watch the magnificent birds as they gather on shallow lakes in staggering numbers, or trade back and forth overhead to fields where they feed. A few of them are the Pungo-Pocosin Lakes (252-796-3004), Alligator River (252-473-1131) and Mattamuskeet (252-926-4021) national wildlife refuges. It’s a good idea to call before heading out to make sure you know where to go and to get an update on refuge road conditions, etc.
Regardless of whether a sportsman harvests a tundra swan, takes photos of them in their winter habitat, or just marvels at them soaring overhead at sunset, each of those regal birds is a trophy in its own right – and an iconic part of our sporting heritage.
This article originally appeared on The Daily News: Outdoor column: North Carolina’s Special Winter Visitors
