Hunting the Rut

The Rut--it's a magical time of the year in the deer woods. No matter where or how you hunt, we all try to time the rut to take advantage of those mature freaks that have been haunting our dreams for the past year. These dream bucks get large for a reason--they avoid hunters like the plague and during season pretty much go nocturnal. Their burning desire to breed is one of the few things that will draw them out of their beds.

However, timing this yearly ritual can take so many twists and turns, and the right time often boils down to a few day window. How is a hunter to maximize his time in the field? Sometimes it is best to step back and realize there is more to the rut than meets the eye.

Phases Of The Rut
Every year based on photoperiodism an instinctive desire to breed in whitetail deer gets triggered. Depending on where you live, the timing of this can vary. However, the month of November is the prominate month for whitetail love making. More specifically, the first two weeks of November highlights a typical breeding frenzy through much of their range.

While bucks are hot to trot, the females hold the cards to this party. Bucks are ready to breed as soon as they lose their velvet. Until the does get ready and come into heat, the bucks have nothing better to do than gear up for the event. Determin-         ing when exactly this occurs is one part science, and one part educated guess with a bit of luck thrown in for good measure.

To start, visit with your local DNR biologist and get the peak breeding days in your area. From there the phases of the rut can be broken down into three major categories. The prerut, peak rut and post rut. The labels to these phases pretty much speak for themselves, but to better understand them further investigation is required.

Prerut
The prerut is simply that time after a buck looses his velvet and some argue that the prerut starts when a buck grows antlers at all. During the prerut, bucks in the area are set on nutrition and gearing up on what they hope is a successful breeding season. Rubbing trees, making scrapes, visiting scent post and markers are regular happenings for any buck actively thinking about finding a girlfriend. Gaining dominance of the area starts by bucks squaring off over real estate and the right to breed.

Certainly the prerut can be broken down in its own phases, but as the actual rut gets closer, the prerut activity increases dramatically as bucks anxiously cruise to find the first does coming into heat. At this point, the fighting gets fierce and bigger bucks start making more mistakes, as they are more active and more visible to waiting hunters. It's prime time to be in the woods.