CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Eddie Nivens heard a loud pop. Minutes later, he found a duck standing in his driveway. The upper half of its bill was dangling from its mouth.

Nivens, who lives in the Ridgeloch neighborhood, near the Arboretum, believes someone lit a firecracker and fed it to the bird.

Volunteers with a waterfowl rescue group have searched ponds and creeks in the area since Sunday's sighting, but they have not been able to locate the duck.

"That duck is damaged. It can’t eat or drink," said Leslie Mills, another neighbor in Ridgeloch who contacted the rescue group.

While no witnesses have been located who actually saw the bird pick up a firecracker, Mills said it appears to be the most logical explanation for the duck's injuries.

She believes the animal thought it was going after food.

"You toss something, the duck is going to come running for it, which is what it did," Mills told NewsChannel 36.