Rubs, Scrapes, and the Rut
A lot has been posted, written about, discussed, cussed, and debated relative to buck rubs, scrapes, and the annual rut (mating period for deer). Yes, that's right. Deer only mate once per year. Pretty much the same as married people over 40.
This past week-end while I was out hunting, I came upon a spot where no fewer than 13 trees had been rubbed. What is a rub and why do bucks rub trees? Excellent questions...allow me to add my perspective.
Early in the year, bucks may rub trees like this to get the velvet off their antlers. Later in the year, however, this is done to (a) mark their territories, and (b) strengthen their necks for fighting to defend territories or does. Basically, this is a visual cue to all other bucks who pass by that this territory is spoken for and you need to leave.
Now, this is a relatively small tree. Does that mean the buck is small? Not necessarily. Big bucks and small bucks alike rub large and small trees. You cannot tell for certain the size of the deer that made this rub - unless you catch him doing it (personally or with a trail camera). What you can look at is how HIGH the rub is up the tree. A larger buck will be capable of reaching farther up the tree.
You will tend to find rub lines along well traveled deer trails, and at the entrance to the woods from a field. Again, remember that this is a sign post to all other male deer to stay away. Where would you post your signs?
So what is a Scrape? Scrapes are places where the buck has pawed the ground down to bare earth. In most all cases, this will be in a location where there are over-hanging branches. Scrapes can be quite large (3 - 4 feet square) or medium sized (2 - 3 feet square). Take a look at an example.
Scrapes are a buck's calling card - their answering machines. They paw the ground clear, urinate on the ground, and then rub and lick the over head branch to leave their scent. If a doe happens by and likes what she sees and smells, then she also urinates on the scrape - effectively telling the buck she'd like to mate with him.
From my experience, you will find 2 - 3 X as many rubs warning others off than you will find scrapes. For while the rubs serve as sign posts and do not have to be revisited, scrapes are visited relatively frequently during the rut. Right, if you set up an answering machine for females to call if they wanted to mate, wouldn't you be checking your messages daily? Heck, you'd probably check them hourly! Problem is, the smart bucks check them at night to avoid the hunting pressure. However, these can be GREAT spots to set yourself close by to get a shot at a buck. Know this, if a buck left this calling card, you can bet he'll be back to check for messages.
So what is this weird thing you're calling a rut? This is the annual breeding period for deer and can be broken down into four sections. Let me start with birth.
Deer babies, or fawns, are born in the Spring when the weather is suitable for their survival. Most deer births are late May to early June. This gives the fawns enough time to grow and be strong enough to survive the coming winter. Since the gestation period for deer is 180 days (6 months), the females need to be pregnant in November (11th month) to be born in May, and December (12th month) to be born in June (approximately). So one could expect the mating to occur sometime during those months. Ah, but there are earlier sessions to the rut than just getting pregnant.
The pre-rut starts about a month before and has the bucks fighting for dominance. Rattling is a good tactic for calling in deer during this time (mid-October). Nick will attest to this as he rattled in a buck from 150 yards away last Friday. The buck ran right to him, downwind, and bolted when he winded Nick.
Seeking & chasing comes next, where bucks will not leave the does alone. They are seeking to find a doe ready to breed and will chase any and all of them incessantly. Hey, you would too if you only got to mate once a year. Although, don't let this once a year thing fool you too much. Deer are not monogamous - that is, they breed as many does as they can and usually more than once. The seeking phase is about 2 weeks prior to breeding as is what I witnessed last Friday. I suggest to you that here in Indiana, we are in the Seeking Phase.
The next phase is Peak Breeding. That is, bucks are running around trying to mate with all the does they can. Good luck calling a buck away from a doe he is "tending" during this phase. Rattling will not do much good during this phase because the bucks don't want to fight anymore, they want to mate. Most have given up on eating and sleeping for all but the bare minimum. It is not unusual to see a buck lose 20-40% of their body weight during the rut.
Post-Rut is the final phase. Basically, any doe that did not get pregnant during the first rut will come into heat again in December. Bucks will be looking to mate with that smaller population of does during this time.
There are billions of resources on the web if any of this interests you. Go to the good ones like Field & Stream, Drury Outdoors, and Pro Hunter's Journal for legitimate information. Remember, NOTHING beats good scouting and your own experience.
Happy Hunting!
This past week-end while I was out hunting, I came upon a spot where no fewer than 13 trees had been rubbed. What is a rub and why do bucks rub trees? Excellent questions...allow me to add my perspective.
Here is a photo I took last Friday 11/2 of a RUB. Beautiful setting by the way.
Early in the year, bucks may rub trees like this to get the velvet off their antlers. Later in the year, however, this is done to (a) mark their territories, and (b) strengthen their necks for fighting to defend territories or does. Basically, this is a visual cue to all other bucks who pass by that this territory is spoken for and you need to leave.
Now, this is a relatively small tree. Does that mean the buck is small? Not necessarily. Big bucks and small bucks alike rub large and small trees. You cannot tell for certain the size of the deer that made this rub - unless you catch him doing it (personally or with a trail camera). What you can look at is how HIGH the rub is up the tree. A larger buck will be capable of reaching farther up the tree.
You will tend to find rub lines along well traveled deer trails, and at the entrance to the woods from a field. Again, remember that this is a sign post to all other male deer to stay away. Where would you post your signs?
So what is a Scrape? Scrapes are places where the buck has pawed the ground down to bare earth. In most all cases, this will be in a location where there are over-hanging branches. Scrapes can be quite large (3 - 4 feet square) or medium sized (2 - 3 feet square). Take a look at an example.
Also note the over-hanging branch at this scrape site.
Scrapes are a buck's calling card - their answering machines. They paw the ground clear, urinate on the ground, and then rub and lick the over head branch to leave their scent. If a doe happens by and likes what she sees and smells, then she also urinates on the scrape - effectively telling the buck she'd like to mate with him.
From my experience, you will find 2 - 3 X as many rubs warning others off than you will find scrapes. For while the rubs serve as sign posts and do not have to be revisited, scrapes are visited relatively frequently during the rut. Right, if you set up an answering machine for females to call if they wanted to mate, wouldn't you be checking your messages daily? Heck, you'd probably check them hourly! Problem is, the smart bucks check them at night to avoid the hunting pressure. However, these can be GREAT spots to set yourself close by to get a shot at a buck. Know this, if a buck left this calling card, you can bet he'll be back to check for messages.
So what is this weird thing you're calling a rut? This is the annual breeding period for deer and can be broken down into four sections. Let me start with birth.
Deer babies, or fawns, are born in the Spring when the weather is suitable for their survival. Most deer births are late May to early June. This gives the fawns enough time to grow and be strong enough to survive the coming winter. Since the gestation period for deer is 180 days (6 months), the females need to be pregnant in November (11th month) to be born in May, and December (12th month) to be born in June (approximately). So one could expect the mating to occur sometime during those months. Ah, but there are earlier sessions to the rut than just getting pregnant.
The pre-rut starts about a month before and has the bucks fighting for dominance. Rattling is a good tactic for calling in deer during this time (mid-October). Nick will attest to this as he rattled in a buck from 150 yards away last Friday. The buck ran right to him, downwind, and bolted when he winded Nick.
Seeking & chasing comes next, where bucks will not leave the does alone. They are seeking to find a doe ready to breed and will chase any and all of them incessantly. Hey, you would too if you only got to mate once a year. Although, don't let this once a year thing fool you too much. Deer are not monogamous - that is, they breed as many does as they can and usually more than once. The seeking phase is about 2 weeks prior to breeding as is what I witnessed last Friday. I suggest to you that here in Indiana, we are in the Seeking Phase.
The next phase is Peak Breeding. That is, bucks are running around trying to mate with all the does they can. Good luck calling a buck away from a doe he is "tending" during this phase. Rattling will not do much good during this phase because the bucks don't want to fight anymore, they want to mate. Most have given up on eating and sleeping for all but the bare minimum. It is not unusual to see a buck lose 20-40% of their body weight during the rut.
Post-Rut is the final phase. Basically, any doe that did not get pregnant during the first rut will come into heat again in December. Bucks will be looking to mate with that smaller population of does during this time.
There are billions of resources on the web if any of this interests you. Go to the good ones like Field & Stream, Drury Outdoors, and Pro Hunter's Journal for legitimate information. Remember, NOTHING beats good scouting and your own experience.
Happy Hunting!
Comments
Post a Comment