Mattamuskeet, Phelps, Pungo, Alligator. 



North Carolina 's coastal lakes are shrouded in mystery. 



Each is unique. Each has its own. set of outstanding ecological features. Each makes its own tattoo on the face of the 

 Pamlico peninsula. 



They have been known since man's earliest wanderings on the continent as places of beauty and abundance. 



Yet, no one knows how they were formed. Scientists have their theories— meteor showers, glaciation, sink holes, wind and 

 waves, peat burns— but none dare to say "this is the way they were made." 



The four shallow kikes lie peacefully on the large wetland area west of Pamlico Sound, once one of the largest swamp 

 forests in the world. 



Each year they attract more and more people. In spring, anglers come in schools to battle their favorite fish. In fall and 

 winter, bird lovers flock to see migratory waterbirds by the thousands. 



This issue of Coastwateh explores Lake Mattamuskeet and Lake Phelps— the largest of the state's natural coastal lakes. 



Mattamuskeet 's Struggle to Maintain Quality 



By C.R. Edgerton 



Lake Mattamuskeet shines like a 

 silver bowl on a table of swampy land. 



From the first discovery of North 

 Carolina's magnificent inland sea, 

 people have hunted and fished here. 

 They have also attempted to mold 

 Mattamuskeet into something it was 

 never meant to be. 



But man's involvement on Lake 

 Mattamuskeet has been only a moment 

 in the lake's biological time line. Long 

 before humans decided they'd control 

 the heartbeat of the lake, millions of 

 migratory birds called Mattamuskeet 

 home during the fall and winter 

 months. 



That's the primary attraction of 

 this lake for hundreds of people every 

 year, says biologist Kelly Davis. With 



In the 1988-89 

 season, the skies over 

 Mattamuskeet were 

 clouded by 23,000 

 tundra swans, 1 7, 000 

 Canada geese, 5, 000 

 snow geese and 

 122 MO ducks 

 (including can- 

 vasbacks, mallards, 

 diving ducks, teals 

 and widgeons). 



binoculars in hand, birders make 

 annual treks to Mattamuskeet's peaty 

 shores. 



In earlier days, hunters swarmed 

 the lake. Most would take home prizes 

 that were all too easy to bag. Old 

 photos show these men with ducks, 

 geese, swans and other migratory birds 

 strung around their shoulders. 



Today, hunting on Mattamuskeet is 

 strictly regulated by refuge officials. For 

 two weeks in December, 360 people- 

 chosen by lottery among thousands who 

 apply— are allowed to hunt for two days 

 each. And at Thanksgiving, the refuge 

 sponsors a two-day hunt for youth. 



"Other than that, hunting is pro- 

 hibited on the lake,' ' Davis says, 



The birds have always been punc- 

 tual. As the air cools and snow clouds 



begin to form, they follow their in- 

 stincts and leave their homes in the far 

 northern territories of the United States 

 and Canada. 



Mother Nature drops her barometric 

 pressure and bends her easterly winds 

 southward. This tail wind is the final 

 cue. Millions of migratory birds begin 

 their flight south. 



As the feathered creatures wing 

 their way toward warmer climes, they 

 are driven by one major influence: a 

 need for food. This food is found in 

 abundance at Lake Mattamuskeet and 

 the other coastal lakes, all of which lie 

 directly under the Atlantic Flyway. 



What kinds of birds seek the refuge 

 of lakes Mattamuskeet, Pungo, Alligator 

 and Phelps? 



In the 1988-89 season, the skies 



Photo by C.R. Edgerton 



