Jerry Dilsaver Wood ducks are among the most-popular species of North American waterfowl, and they are the most-abundant in North Carolina waters.

The drake wood duck may be one of the most widely recognized duck in all of the United States. Its colorful winter plumage of bright green and brown with white details and their piercing red eyes, gives them an appearance no other duck can match. Hen wood ducks, while not as brightly colored as the drakes, are also very eye-catching. Even better, they are one of the most populous ducks, with good numbers in most states and high numbers in the South where they are the only duck that consistently produces two hatches each year.

While wood ducks will use open ponds — especially when breeding boxes have been placed for them — they prefer the habitat of bottomland forests, backwater swamps and stands of trees that have become engulfed in beaver ponds. Wood ducks have feet with claws that allow them to perch on tree limbs. Wood ducks aren’t generally very active during the middle of the day, but move heavily at daybreak and sunset.

Wood ducks like to nest in holes in old trees and prefer those that are over water. Wood duck hens lay large clutches of eggs that may number 10 or more. Within a day or so of hatching, the ducklings crawl to the edge of the nest and jump into the water. They already have basic feeding instincts and begin feeding on plants, insects and mollusk larvae they can reach by dabbling in the water.

Across the nation, wood ducks are second only to mallards as the most popular duck with hunters and for numbers in the average bag. They may be the most popular duck in the South, as almost any small swamp or woodland pond has a few wood ducks using it. Many duck hunters had their first experience with wood ducks in flooded timber, a swamp or on a beaver pond at a friend or relative’s farm. Their ability to thrive in small areas close to people allows students and many motivated outdoorsmen to get in a quick hunt before heading out to class or work.