In my early days as a deer hunter, I learned the basic patterns of the whitetail rut (breeding season) by observation. I had little idea of why deer interact as they did during different times of the year but I learned through years of hunting when to watch for signs such as rubs where bucks remove the velvet from their antlers on trees and later spar with small sapplings during the primary rut. I learned to spot rub trees by looking for an isolated juniper sapling or check the edge of a sumac grove. I had no idea why bucks chose those particular trees but I learned early on that they did.
And early in my career it became obvious that bucks often favored each other’s company during the summer months but, usually in September, they broke away from their bachelor herds and stayed to themselves during the rut. Oh, it’s common to see a couple bucks together during the rut, but when breeding season actually begins, a pecking order has developed and dominance has been established by the mature bucks. "
The fighting is finished, except by mature bucks just prior to the peak of the breeding season.
I will never forget my first time experiencing two mature bucks fighting. The year was 1964 and I was hunting west of Houston near Waller on a big ranch owned by a family member. I was sitting on a couple of 2X4’s nailed in a fork of a big white oak that was dropping acorns and a hotspot for attracting deer. It was almost dark and I heard what sounded like two baseball bats whacking together and then the darndest commotion imaginable, especially in the quiet, still period just before dark on a cold November morning.
At first, I had no idea what was happening but in very low light I watched the two bucks battle their way to within a few yards from the tree I was in. I remember sitting spellbound for at least two minutes until one of the bucks decided he had enough and bound away through the woods at top speed. I was slow getting down from that tree after dark I remember...I didn’t want any part of those antlers if the dominate buck still wanted to fight.
As a young deer hunter, I remember wondering what caused the bucks to fight. I had no idea it was nature’s way of allowing the strongest to breed and ensure the continuation of the species. What I didn’t know is that surely a doe was in estrus nearby and that caused the ruckus.
Yes, much of what I’ve learned about deer is through simply being in the woods for many decades and watching the animals. Later in life I was fortunate to spend time with guys like Richard Boitnott who was one of the top wildlife biologists for International Paper Company and my good friend Larry Weishuhn with whom I have had the pleasure of hunting deer for many years. I’ve learned a lot about deer from Larry and spent a great deal of time around deer camps quizzing Larry about things that I have observed through the years but didn’t really understand what caused deer do the things they do.
During our visit on my weekly outdoor show - Catfish Radio - this past week I asked Larry to explain the onset to the whitetail rut and what causes the changes in bucks’ attitude and appearance (loss of velvet) this time of year.
Larry explained it something like this -- With the decreasing amount of daylight this time of year, a buck’s testosterone increased and the antler bases respond by shutting off the blood supply which caused the velvet covering the antlers to die and dry up. Velvet will eventually fall off, but bucks rub their antlers on bushes and small saplings, and soon their antlers are in what we hunters call “hard horn”. During this period of increased male hormone, bucks begin to see other bucks in a different light and leave their buddies they spent the summer with and become somewhat solitary. A pecking order is quickly established through mock fights early in the fall which transition to serious battles as the rut progresses, battles where bucks are often injured or sometime killed.
During the rut, bucks make scrapes, usually under overhanging limbs. They deposit their scent on the overhanging limb by rubbing their preorbital glands on the branch. Between their front toes is the interdigital gland which is a unique calling card each deer, both buck and doe possesses. Deer can track each other through the unique scent left by these glands, which is unique to each deer. These scrapes become a social gathering spot for deer during the rut and both doe and buck stop by to leave their calling card.
The actual breeding period is timed so that fawns will be born about 230 days later in spring/early summer when fawn survival is best because of available cover and food.
Sometime in late winter and early spring the male hormone decreases, antlers drop and soon a slow hormonal rise caused the new antlers to begin growing and the entire amazing process repeats itself.
Whitetail deer are amazing animals and hunting them has been a lifelong passion for many of us. We eagerly await frosty mornings, knowing that “our time” of the year has once again arrived. We don’t have to be wildlife biologists to learn about deer. With a working knowledge of why deer do what they do and when to expect changes in their behavior, we can all become better hunters.
Here’s to a fun and successful deer season to all, OUR time of year begins with bow season which is less than a month away. Many ranches in Texas under TPWD managed land programs allow hunting with all legal means at the beginning of bow season through permits allocated to the landowner. Here’s to a freezer full of venison and possibly a new shoulder mount for the den wall!
Listen to Luke’s radio show/podcast “Catfish Radio with Luke Clayton and Friends” just about everywhere you listen to your podcast. Email Luke through his website at www.catfishradio.org.
