Seeking can be expected any time during the rut when a buck finishes chasing or tending a doe. As chasing and tending increases, seeking behavior declines. Seeking behavior begins abruptly and kicks off the whitetail rut about the time of the full moon, but not just any full moon, because day length is also involved. As the doe-to-buck ratio skews toward does, bucks spend less time seeking because females are readily available.

As the doe-to-buck ratio approaches 1:1, seeking behavior and interactions between bucks are maximized. As the herd’s age structure is skewed toward young bucks, the youngsters become increasingly involved in the rut and breeding. In herds in which bucks reach 5-plus years of age, dominant bucks do most of the breeding. However, don’t expect a buck to go far from a hot doe to visit scrapes and scents.īucks in healthy herds with a balanced sex and age structure have well-defined social orders. Bucks also respond to grunt calls, because they seek to drive off other bucks. Tracking can be effective for hunting a buck tending a doe. After the doe is bred, the buck again seeks other does and the cycle resumes. Tending, which ends abruptly, usually lasts about 24 hours. He beds and moves with the doe until she is bred. Stand- and still-hunting in a near-estrous doe’s home range can be productive, because several bucks could enter the chase.Īfter a doe allows a buck to accompany her, tending begins. This can result in a long chase that continues until the doe lets the buck accompany her. The buck occasionally catches up and tries to corner the doe. She soon slows or pauses to look back for the buck, which won’t seek other does, and continues in pursuit. As the buck approaches, the doe runs, but not in all-out flight. Chasing BehaviorĬhasing begins when a buck locates a doe near estrus. These bucks will often skirt the edges of swamps and forest transitions.

Bucks in this mode are also vulnerable to calling, rattling, scents and decoys. Intense seeking activity makes for great stand-hunting. The trigger is not exactly known, but it might be a chemical signal from does approaching estrus. The onset of each rut period is marked by a sudden increase in buck activity as bucks seek does. The chart below predicts the South’s 2021 rutting activity. Rather, they work together and should be viewed as one blending into the next as the rut progresses. It’s important to note that the seeking, chasing and tending lines do not work independently of each other. The top chart predicts the 2021 rutting intensity for the North. To take advantage of this, place stands near deer travel routes and feeding areas. The primary rut behaviors predicted in this calendar are “seeking,” “chasing” and “tending.” Feeding is a buck’s primary pre-rut activity. The fluidity of activity levels (shown in the charts below) moves the days by a day or two depending upon the current major/minor phase.

Oklahoma deer hunting s