North Carolina
255,000
Duck Statewide Harvest
35,900
Goose Statewide Harvest
33,200
No. Waterfowl Licenses Sold Annually
8.3
Ducks Per Hunter
2.6
Geese Per Hunter
$25
Cost of Resident Waterfowl Hunting License
$14
Cost of Resident State Stamps and Permits
$25
Federal Duck Stamp
$80 for 10-day license, but $60 for Georgia residents, $70 for Tennessee residents, $75 for South Carolina residents and $110 for Virginia residents.
Cost of Non-Resident Waterfowl Hunting License
$14
Cost of Non-Resident State Stamps and Permits
$25
Federal Duck Stamp
North Carolina waterfowlers shot about 255,000 ducks in 2021-'22, including more than 96,000 wood ducks. The action didn't stop there, though, as hunters also took great numbers of mallards, gadwall, wigeon, bluebills, ringnecks, buffleheads, hooded mergansers, black ducks and green-winged teal. When you add the more than 35,000 geese taken in 2021-'22, it's easy to see why North Carolina merits an A rating.
Oh, and did we mention that you can hunt tundra swans in North Carolina? The state's Wildlife Resources Commission issues 5,000 tags annually, but only about 6,000 people apply each year, so odds of receiving a license aren't that daunting.
Pamlico Sound, between mainland North Carolina and the Outer Banks, is a major stopover for many waterfowl, including good numbers of long-tailed ducks and all three species of scoters. It's not uncommon to shoot divers and even puddle ducks there, too.
The state also has ample public land on which to hunt, including many managed waterfowl impoundments and special-permit areas on state game lands in the coastal region.
— Compiled and written by Brian Lovett
Seasons and Bag Limits
