MarquetteMagnum

Oh they are rutting alright, I saw them smelling each others buts and there was 2 bucks with 6 doe's and fawns and they were eating acorns, if that don't scream RUTT, well I don't know what does.

Grasshopper13

Wait till the "lull" hits......nobody will think there's any rutting going then, lol.

Seems like every year, someone asks a questionlike this....the truth is, they'll start rutting when the does become receptive. That's controlled by the shortening of daylight hours....Please don't think I'm making fun of you, I've been guilty of it myself in years past lol.

I do know that in about 2 weeks, bucks will start cruising looking for does here at my hunting spot, so I intend to be there......


GH

Living24

After reading through these post i had a question of my own. where i hunt in SC this year there is a lack of rubs this season but seems to be tons of scraps.
What does this indicate about the status of the deer activity and the rut.

trailrider894

well it's not rut. i've been stricken with bad shot's thinking bout giving up bow hunting maybe it's just not my sport. i'll just stick to quad racing. and rifle hunting.

TreednNC

cant hit em unless you practice....little less quad racing practice and a little more bow practice might make you successful

trailrider894

well i'm not racing or practicing right now. due to a small knee injurie. i can shoot pretty darn good. like a 4inch circle 9 out of 10 times at 30yds.

MO-KS_hunter

Having gone deer hunting in MO for the last 8 years, I can tell you that the deer don't start rutting until the beginning of Nov. The peak is on or about the 15th of Nov (right at the beginning of opening weekend of rifle season). I believe the Missouri Dept of Conservation does this on purpose for the rifle hunters. I personally would like to see MO move the rifle season to the first weekend of Dec (like Kansas, Iowa and I believe Illinois) to give bowhunters a better chance of scoring a bigger buck. It would also probably help drop the mortality rate of the bigger bucks which would help MO grow some true giants. That's just my opinion though.....

Spearchucker

You are starting to see Pre-rut activity. Bucks come are ready before Doe's for breeding, and start cruising their scrape lines and territory looking for receptive does. The Period of the rut you are referring to as "The Rut" is the Peak rut, when the Does are coming into esterus. That typically happens in early-mid Nov in most places. Oct is when the bucks start rubbing, scraping and getting ready, but I very much doubt that they have hit the peak rut yet, and that breeding has started.

Here is some info that will hopefully help you understand "The Rut" better

Pre-Rut
As the temperatures begin to fall the bucks shed the antler velvet and begin their sparing matches. These are not life and death fights but simply a push and shove affair where bucks get rid of some frustration and test their competitors. It’s almost a joke on the bucks from Mother Nature that they are ready to breed but the does aren’t. At this time bucks still live together in bachelor groups.

Chasing Phase
About two to four weeks after the Pre Rut the chasing phase begins. The mature bucks begin now to leave the buck groups and lead a live in solitude, beginning to follow the does around, chasing them. At about this time the does begin to produce pheromones as the estrus nears. It is believed that this pheromones advertising the estrus cycle causes bucks to produce more male hormones.

At first bucks follow the does in some distance, shadowing the does. While there may be several bucks that follow a doe, it will be the dominant bucks that follow the doe at a close distance. As the doe nears her full estrus cycle the bucks chase becomes more intensified.

The Rut
The estrus period, where a doe is most fertile, only lasts about 24 hours. The doe will now stand still for the buck rather than run away from him the moment he tries to come very close to her. She will now tolerate that the buck mounts her. After breeding the buck will stay with that doe throughout her estrus period before he goes off to find a new estrus doe, commonly referred to as “doe in heat”. Bucks breed several does in a very short time frame. Not all the does come in heat at exactly the same day.

If a doe has not been breed the first time she will come in heat again after 28 days. Researchers have found that some does can go trough six to seven estrus cycles. However, most does are breed the first time around.

It is the few does that repeat their estrus cycles in 28 days that lead up to the post rut.

Post Rut
The post rut is the same as the Rut but very much less intensive as the first rut. Bucks are still wandering about and checking out doe feeding and bedding areas to find the last un-breed doe.

What triggers the rut? As I said before the doe entering the estrus cycle triggers the rut. The next question then would what makes the doe come into the estrus cycle? Well there are many different opinion and theories. In my experience, that is shared by many experts. The trigger is a sharp drop in temperature. The first cold snap may be what causes the doe to come into estrus. This also would explain why the rut takes place at different times in different areas and years. While in the north the rut may come with the first frost of the year in the south it may be just the difference of a few degrees in temperature. There are also theories that the moon plays some part in the rut too, but I have no data or experience to verify this phenomenon.

2droptine

No Rifle Season in IL only shot gun, which is a total of seven day, 3 the weekend before thanks giving and 4days the weekend after thanksgiving weekend.

Great info SPEARCHUCKER, not sure I agree with the whole sharp drop in temp triggering the rut, but great info none the less.

jim1966

Closestit is would be pre rut.