Peak
whitetail rutting activity in most states occurs during firearms hunting
seasons. How can you shift the odds in your favor during that time, when
the big bucks are most active?Let me state up front that rather than being a precise part of deer hunting, the rut is a general framework. Granted, it is the time when big bucks are most vulnerable, but even that statement must be taken with a grain of salt. Year to year the rut differs from place to place, and also from buck to buck. Still, during the rut, you and I are out there hunting every minute we can because, despite its quirks, this is when hunters take many of the trophy bucks.
It takes at least three years for a whitetail buck to achieve trophy status -- enough time for that animal to learn that humans in the woods rarely mean him well. Bucks that are three years old and older achieve that status partly through luck and partly by adjusting their behavior to minimize human contact. Typically such bucks are nocturnal and considerably more wary than other deer.
Except during the rut, trophy bucks rarely move about during the day. The whitetail rut is generally regarded as that time between when bucks rub the velvet free from their antlers to when their antlers drop. However, technically the rut is when the does willingly breed. Bucks, whether antlered or not, eagerly seize any breeding opportunity. Hunters traditionally refer to the rut as the time when most of an area’s does enter into estrus and accept the overtures of waiting bucks.
Doe estrous cycles are regulated by the shortening periods of sunlight, not the weather, although cold snaps seem to accelerate the process. November 15th is generally recognized as the all-round peak of rutting, but the actual peak for your area can vary greatly from this. In some areas, like Pennsylvania, the peak of rutting activity occurs in mid to late November. In Tennessee it is usually during the first week in November. In southern Alabama it’s in mid to late January. Those does not successfully bred during the main peak of the rut will come into estrus again in 28 days, followed by another, even smaller cycle 28 days later.
So-called "peak rutting" activity is when most does enter estrus. During the whitetail estrous period, bucks have about a 48-hour window of opportunity to breed a doe. At least a day prior to coming into estrus, a does sex organs give off olfactory messages (or scents) that let nearby bucks know her impending breeding status. Prior to a doe entering into "heat," or peak readiness to breed, bucks strive to locate these soon-to-be nuptial does. Bucks will remain with those does as long as a couple of days after estrus, as bucks are always anxious to breed.
While laws vary from state to state, most states allow firearms hunting during the peak of the whitetail rut. Bowhunting-only seasons typically precede this time, and often follow it. A surprising number of bowhunters set aside their bows when peak rutting activity coincides with firearms seasons. A good argument can be made for doing so, but, in my opinion, this is an outstanding time to bowhunt for trophy bucks.
Reverse Your Rut-Hunting Strategy
Odds are that, during the rut, you seek to locate near a well-used scrape line, where the rubs are so big they keep you awake at night. It is a time-honored strategy that works well at 100- to 250-yard ranges, where human scent is not a problem. If you’re bowhunting, locating within arrow range of a well-used scrape line means you run a high risk of being winded. Most bowhunters prefer to hunt the pre-rut and early during the rut, not the actual peak of rutting activity, for just that reason.
Bucks working their scrape lines have all of their keen olfactory receptors scanning their surroundings for the odorous signs of ready-to-breed does and interloping bucks. I have observed that these animals are keyed up when around their scrape lines -- constantly searching the air for clues. They are in a heightened state of alertness. But when bucks come upon does feeding at the edge of a greenfield, they are less wary. So while hunting a scrape line can work, I recommend hunting the food sources. When a buck approaches a group of does or is already among them doing what anxious-to-breed bucks do, his attention is not focused on anything other than those sweet little female whitetails. He is distracted, looking for a "find" among the does.
When scouting, of course, I still look for scrapes and rubs, as they are the best signs for locating areas frequented by trophy bucks. But once I locate them, I fan out and look for the nearest key feed areas where there are lots of signs of fresh doe use. I have never believed that anyone could distinguish between the track of a big doe and a big buck. However, when I find a grove of white oaks full of acorns or a cornfield where there are many different sizes of tracks and lots of droppings, I’m usually confident that I have found a key feeding area. My ticket to numerous record-book-class whitetail bow kills over the last 10 years has been uncovering the trail connecting the big, heavily used scrape lines with the doe feeding areas.
Hunting the pantry of a buck, and not that animal’s bedroom, is a strategy bowhunters can use to get near enough to a buck during the rut to fatally arrow that animal -- even when the woods are full of rifle hunters.
Using Calls During The Rut
Long before grunt calls were fashionable, I verbally communicated with bucks by clasping my hands over my mouth and making guttural sounds. There are many great grunt calls on the market today and, when used properly, all of them work. The problem with a grunt call in the hands of many bowhunters is that the hunter seems to think he or she is Louis Armstrong playing a trumpet. These are not musical instruments. You are not the Pied Piper, blowing a call to lure in a buck. Your grunt call is an attention getter. It is an aid to alert a passing, already seen buck to come investigate possible breeding opportunities.
Rule number one is never blow a grunt call unless you see a buck and he is not moving in your direction. Rule number two is if you think you need to blow it again once a buck has reacted to your call, wait a few minutes. Like an old turkey gobbler responding to a hen’s seductive yelps, that curious buck may be circling the source of the sound. Use your grunt call as sparingly as possible while still vocally communicating with a buck.
So is this all you need to know to hunt the rut? Absolutely not. However, whitetail behavior is predictable enough that, if you follow these hints, you can make the rut work for you. With the rut, 2 plus 2 may not always equal 4, but then all you need is a 30-yard shot, right?