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Who Needs Does?

Who Needs Does?

By Steve Bartylla

Wrapped in my Heater Body Suit, the cold wasn’t an issue. If it wasn’t for the large oak swaying during the stiff gusts, I might have forgotten the strong mid-November cold front had dipped temperatures into single digits.

Everybody knows extreme temperature drops paired with gale force winds put the brakes on rutting activity as the bucks wait out the front.

Still, there he was. The big buck I’d been after was standing broadside 20 yards away. The only problem was he’d snapped off his left beam some time since I’d last captured him on my trail camera.

I watched the great buck wolf down a few mouthfuls of beans before he ventured off to begin the night’s search for a girlfriend.

That buck is an example of two important aspects of the rut. First, movement can occur on even the worst days. Second, there are times when hunting does and funnels separating doe groups aren’t the best rut strategies.

Setting the Stage

We’ve been programmed to hunt does during the rut, and for good reason. Bucks, especially those that have experienced a few ruts, have a good handle on where does are most likely to be during any time of day.

Stands located where does spend time during daylight, as well as pinch points separating doe concentrations, make great ambush sites for rut-crazy bucks.

It takes extreme weather to affect the rut. Biologists agree it’s the amount of daylight that triggers the rut in does. The health of the doe, her maturity level, the timing of her birth and several other factors can influence when an individual doe comes into estrus, but a vast majority will cycle at about the same time every year.

Mother Nature won’t allow temperature, moon phase, wind, rain, snow or sleet to dictate breeding. Whitetail survival depends on the majority of fawns being dropped during a brief window. That means breeding takes place in an equally brief window.

That’s why hunting does during the rut makes sense. Find the does and you’ll find bucks.

Not so fast, my friend.

Understanding Bucks

The first thing to acknowledge is that bucks are ready, willing and eager to mate from the time they shed their velvet until they shed their antlers. Bucks think about mating for months compared to just hours for a doe. During those few hours, does are the queens of the whitetail universe. Extreme weather might push breeding activity to nocturnal hours, but everything revolves around does when they’re in estrus.

Outside that tiny window, a buck’s other considerations like food and security come into play. What’s more, recent studies have shown a significant percentage of a doe’s fawns have multiple fathers. That means a buck is locked down with a doe only a portion of the 24 to 36 hours she’s ready to mate.

In short, mature bucks spend far more time not breeding than breeding during the weeks-long process we call the rut.

That means focusing exclusively on doe hangouts, even during the rut, isn’t always the best strategy to take a big buck.

For example, mature bucks are very picky about bedding locations. Family groups, consisting of does, fawns and young bucks, are far less selective in their bedding sites. All else being equal, they don’t seem to want to walk farther to the fridge than they have to.

A mature buck will bed quite a distance from food in exchange for security and seclusion. Because of this, he gravitates to sites that offer a superior view, such as points jutting off ridges, or the thickest, nastiest cover available.

If you hunt adjacent to the doe bedding near a food source, you might never see the buck you’re after, at least during daylight.

Finally, the idea that mature bucks abandon their home range in search of does is exaggerated. Sure, estrous does and their scent trails lead some astray, but that is the exception. The majority of bucks stick to their home range, where they know the locations of doe concentrations. I have way too much trail camera data indicating that mature bucks stick to their home ranges to believe otherwise.

If you think about it, sticking close to home makes sense. Why would a buck abandon an area he knows intimately, and where he has carved out his place in the buck hierarchy in exchange for an area he knows nothing about? Wandering into unknown territory wouldn’t likely increase his breeding opportunities and would certainly pose greater survival risk.

Tying it Together

That is a lot of background information to get to the main point, which is it helps to know when to hunt near does and when to shift back to hunting buck hangouts during the rut.

We know weather doesn’t halt breeding activity, but it can push a majority of it to nighttime hours. We’re almost certain mature bucks aren’t really locked down with does for long periods. We also know bucks are likely to continue using their bedding areas even during the rut because they’re so concerned about security.

How does that information help you determine the best place to ambush a buck during the rut? The first step is easy. Identify conditions when hunting does isn’t the best option.

By now you know it’s when weather hinders daytime rut activity. Strong wind, unusually warm temperatures, or heavy rain or snow can minimize daylight rutting activities.

When that happens, ignore the does and go back to hunting your buck’s pre-rut pattern. Assuming he isn’t actively breeding a doe, odds are he will be bedding in the same locations he used before the rut kicked in.

If he had a preferred food source before the rut, your buck likely will begin the evening by visiting that food before going in search of does.

Set up on the food source or along the buck’s likely route to it if you want to see him while there’s still shooting light.

Finally

We all look forward to the rut, and with good reason. It’s the most exciting time to be in the woods and offers the best chance to take a mature buck.

The rut doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and we often don’t get the cool, clear and calm days afield we’ve pictured in our minds.

Instead of spending countless unproductive hours in your rut stand complaining about the weather, do something about it. When the rut gets tough, smart hunters get moving — back to the buck’s pre-rut hangouts.

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