Tyrrell County Wildlife

Welcome to Tyrrell County, Land of the Free, Home of the Bear. While many humans only recognize Tyrrell County as the blank place on the map between Raleigh and the beach, other species find this place to be home, sweet home. While Tyrrell County lacks Wal-Mart, Target, and coffee shops (I miss the Millhouse), it has all of the appointments necessary for a successful wildlife community.

Since the real estate bubble burst about a year ago, many people are finding great deals on home territories. Bears, ducks, deer, and wild turkeys are experienceing the same bubble collapse, Tyrrell County still abounds with great opportunities. While elk and bison once roamed here long ago (yeah, really), bears only recently disappeared from the piedmont - they ran out of real estate. Those bears had to move elsewhere to find suitable real estate. A real estate listing for a bear would read like this, if bears could read or write:

100 acre studio, no people around.
Outdoor plumbing, food everywhere.
Tall trees, occasional bee hive.
River views, farms nearby.

If you give a bear that option, he's there. So if you look out your Tyrrellinian window, you'll probably see the same thing. That's why bears outnumber people 3 to 1 in this county. There are about 4, 000 people, so that means there are 12,000 bears. Never approach a bear while you are eating a honey bun.

According to my Ducks Unlimited Calendar, on April 24 all scaup, redheads, and canvasbacks reached the prairie breeding grounds in what is called the Prairie Pothole Region. The PPR is a lot like Tyrrell County only it includes North and South Dakota, and the prairie provinces of Canada. This habitat is all wetland or agricultural fields with 5 to 500 acre potholes (tiny ponds) about every mile. The potholes are often shallow and have islands of cattails and bulrush, which is great for a duck to hide, lay eggs, and hide some more. Tyrrell County (and some of Hyde, Dare, Washington, and Beaufort) has a lot of the same habitat...so there are also breeding and resident waterfowl here! I have seen these ducks...mainly wood ducks...these amazing birds can live anywhere there is a hole in a tree over water. "Scuppernong Squealers" is what I prefer to call them...they are a sporting bird and are totally palatable. Notably, my favorite of the resident species are the mallards and black ducks I have found...they are in Hushmouth Creek.

Identify this duck:
The Eastern 4-H Center does it's part to conserve native wildlife. Our Camp Canvasback is pretty much the premiere hunter education and conservation camp for youth. Campers get Hunter Education cards, which are needed to acquire a license. Game wardens leadmany of the classes during Camp Canvasback...so you can rest assured that we are cultivating ethical and responsible outdoor enthusiasts. The North Carolina Waterfowl Association is a tremendous partner in this effort! They provide scholarship money that makes this type of camp possible in a place where waterfowling is as old as the Scuppeprnong. We still have a couple of openings for this weeklong camp. The total cost of the 6 day/5 night adventureis only $150!!! Camp Canvasback is July 19-24, so sign up will wrap-up soon

While many people relegate Tyrrell County as an outta-the-way place...I prefer to be here as opposed to the beach or Raleighwood. Bears are better neighbors. I want geese and swans flying over my "pizer" much more than 747's. A traffic jam here almost always includes a bear crossing the road. And with 3 bears to every person, that's a lot of bear to go around.

Enjoy the day...