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Dove Season - Opening Day '08
Harrison Island
Maryland
9/01/08
Mark Burchick

9/1/08

Opening Day of Dove Season

Harrison Island, MD

The Battle of Harrison Island

	Dan Betz and I were guests of Mr. Joe Brown, land owner of the 400-acre Harrison Island, located immediately downstream of White's Ferry on the Potomac River.
	Tickseed Sunflower Bidens polylepsis.
	Wingstem Verbesina alterniflolia.
	It was the best day of dove hunting I've ever had. Dan and I both bagged our limit within jut a few hours after noon. Several shooters were hunting and we all maxed out. Joe Brown is an outstanding natural resources manager of the island and the years of quality habitat management are obvious.
	The MD DNR police motored to the island via a boat after visiting McKee-Besher Wildlife Management Area, which is south of the island, along the C&O Canal. From my understanding, this is the first time DNR has ever come to the island, except when Mr. Brown has purposely called for illegal trespass or poaching.
	One of the many agricultural fields and food plots was a 25-acre stand of sunflower, and that's where we all hunted.
	It was a beautiful, low humidity day with a slight breeze. The birds came through as singles, doubles and occasional flocks. It was fast and furious. Dan and I went through nearly a case of shells.
	Good food, good people and an energizing day of wing shooting.
	Mr. Brown is managing fox and is on his third cycle of raising and releasing bobwhite quail. He uses a product known as the Quail Surrogator, which raises day-old chicks through to five weeks, and then ready for release into his several (nearly 100-acres) warm season grass fields, dominated by switchgrass.
	The island has several vast sweeps of old meadow habitat, managed in rotation cuttings.
	We field dressed what seemed like hundreds of birds, most of which became a meal of dove breast, wrapped in jalapeno peppers and bacon and then grilled. We also had grilled corn on the cob, hamburgers and hot dogs.