Water for the fowl?

This season, duck hunting doesn't just require finding ducks; hunters first must find water

EASTERN WAKE COUNTY -- It wasn't ideal weather for duck hunting, but it had to do. Three hunters sat in a 12-foot-by-5-foot wood-frame blind, necks craned skyward as they searched for ducks in the cloudless dawn sky. They were silent, the better to listen for the whistle of unseen wings.

On a morning devoid of wind, light fog clung to the tree line surrounding the beaver swamp.

Jason Dudley of Whistlin' Wings Guide Service whispered shooting instructions to his clients, Billy Clinard of Clayton and Craig McLamb of Garner. Mosquitoes whined about but were held at bay by a ThermaCell bug-repelling device.

A few moments after legal shooting light, a single wood duck came winging by and evaded a fusillade from the trio. It was Oct. 4 and the 2007 duck season had begun with a bang.

The hunters found steady action for about two hours. But it was just a taste.

This Saturday, thousands of Tar Heel duck hunters will take to the beaver swamps, impoundments and lakes across the state for the second leg of the three-part season, which runs Nov. 10 to Dec. 1. The third leg is Dec. 15 to Jan 26.

The duck forecast looks fine. But the water forecast isn't: Waterfowlers may have to hunt for water as much as for ducks to find success this season.

"The drought is drastically going to affect our season," said Glen Veasey, an avid Raleigh waterfowler. "A lot of impoundments are dry. Who knows where the resident birds are?"

Veasey, 37, plans to hunt in Wake County on Saturday, then in waterfowl-rich Hyde County as the season progresses.

Hunters such as Veasey who have opportunities to hunt a range of locations may fare better than those limited to one region, says Doug Howell, a waterfowl biologist for the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

"My feeling, based on the habitat we manage, is that it will be a tough year for hunters unless we get some significant rain," Howell said. "The Piedmont impoundments have suffered the worst."

Howell said that he thinks a lot of ducks will concentrate on the eight national wildlife refuges in the far eastern part of the state, but some birds will travel.

"Weather and food sources move and push birds across the state," he said. "The drought is more negative for duck hunters than ducks. People who have water will do well; people who don't won't."

Howell said that the majority of the ducks are still north.

"My feeling is the migration hasn't really kicked in," he said. "We might even be late this year."

Dudley has been keeping a close eye on his swamp lands. Since that morning in October, he has been back to his swamp leases and found more water in them because of recent rains. He also has found more ducks in them, just in time for the fat of the season.

Plagued by drought

For Veasey and his friends, who will be hunting impoundments close to some of the wildlife refuges, gunning could be good.

For Triangle gunners looking to hunt public impoundments, the season could be long and crowded.

"Right now, the impoundments are completely dry," said Brent Beamer, a wildlife technician with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission stationed at the Butner Depot. He and the crew at Butner administer the public waterfowl impoundments around Jordan and Falls lakes. "Even the Flat River [where the commission pumps water to flood the impoundments] is dry."

Beamer said the green-tree impoundments (flooded timber) at Jordan are huntable.

"For some reason, Jordan had more runoff than Falls," Beamer said, speaking of the rains several weeks ago. "Until we get a real good rain event, these impoundments will be dry."

Lure of duck hunting

Duck hunting may be the most involved of the hunting pursuits. The equipment is specialized, from the waders to the shotguns to the decoys, calls and dogs.

Hunters go to the expense and effort of preparing for a hunt, only to pray for wind, rain and generally nasty weather -- all the better to get the birds flying.

What is it that draws people to sit amid insects or to endure awful weather to wait for birds that might or might not fly by within range?

"That's a loaded question," Veasey said, laughing. "There's something about the cold mornings, the still outdoors, seeing the morning break, appreciating that time of the year and that time of the day."

For Veasey, part of the duck-hunting appeal is the work of his two Labrador retrievers, Josie and her daughter Stella.

"The older I get, the more I appreciate harvesting birds," Veasey said. "I get a lot of enjoyment watching my dogs work."

Retrievers play an integral role with many waterfowlers, but not all. Dudley uses an old johnboat to retrieve ducks for his clients, and he knows there is water in his swamp leases to float it.

"I've got water now," he said from a cell phone as he surveyed one location. "It's overflowing the dam."

"I probably run out 1,500 to 2,000 geese this morning. I've got mallards and wood ducks.

"I know we'll get our limits Saturday."