By DAVE RICHEY
Outdoors columnist
October 26, 2008 10:32 am
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They appear like morel mushrooms after a spring rain, except they show up in late October. Deer scrapes often develop overnight, and like the tasty fungi, rutting scrapes attract a great deal of deer hunter attention.
A deer scrape can be found almost anywhere at this time of year, and we found one that was right along the edge of one of the dirt two-track logging trails that crisscross one of my hunting areas. I’ve seen bigger scrapes than this in my time, but this old boy must have been really frustrated when he visited this spot.
Large clots of dirt and clumps of grass had been kicked away from the raw patch of pawed earth. Big antler tine marks were dragged through the urinestained ground, and the overhead licking branch had been chewed and ripped from the tree. A nearby rub on a tree was fresh, shiny and big, and the buck hadn’t been content to rub just one tree. He hit a lick on several nearby trees.
Research shows there is some partiality shown to rutting scrape locations and trees that get rubbed by an amorous buck prior to the rut. Over the years I’ve learned that some of these scrapes and rubs seem to reappear, year after year, in much the same locations. At times, they appear in exactly the same spots and on the same trees.
The pre-rut phase of the rut has begun, and this is the so-called “chasing” phase, where bucks chase soon-tobe- in-estrus does. Studies also indicate that a buck that chases a doe seems to prime his pump and stimulates the doe into being receptive to breeding.
There are two other rutting phases: the rut itself, when most of the does will be bred. The post-rut period is when the younger does come into their first estrus, and will be bred from December through March. Most of the does are bred by the older bucks, and very few does are bred by 1 ½-year-old bucks unless the more mature and dominant bucks have been taken by hunters.
This particular pre-rut scrape was just a bit smaller than an average kitchen table, minus the extra leaves that are added for a large dinner party. This scrape was pawed down two or three inches below the level of the nearby ground, and it was damp with urine and the pungent ammonia smell was strong in the air.
The scrape was four to five feet long and three feet wide, and the pungent ammonia smell assaulted my nostrils. It was fresh and my thought was the buck had just been there.
I felt the buck had been working the scrape when he heard my SUV come down the wooded road. The road edge, on one side, is lined with thick tag alders while the other side is more open land with several large maples, and a carpet of bracken ferns covering the ground. None of the trees were within easy bow range of the scrape but that really didn’t matter.
I knew where that buck would go after freshening the scrape, and that’s why I didn’t worry about putting up a nearby stand. Another stand is about 200 yards away, and anyone who wanted to follow his rub line on nearby trees would see it led right past that stand. The stand was just downwind of the trail he used.
It’s one thing to know the buck often follows that path under ideal circumstances. However, what is right for the hunter may not always be right for the buck. Knowing a big buck is in the area is important but many hunters never realize that it’s the doe that can lead him into charted and uncharted areas.
The obvious charted area would be down that trail and past that stand. An overly aggressive buck and a wary doe may head right out of that section, through the next section, and then breed when the doe is ready, which may take place two or three miles away. That is why some good bucks seem to disappear during the pre-rut or rut.
It’s simple. The buck is going to stick with his latest girlfriend, and they may be gone for a few days. Don’t give up if a big buck doesn’t show up for a short period of time.
One time I sat in that stand along that trail, and saw the big buck coming down the two-track, his nose to the ground, obviously scenttrailing an estrus doe. My Oneida Black Eagle was ready with an arrow nocked, and I was set, but the doe must have slipped through the area before I arrived. The buck followed the scent trail into the tag alders and disappeared behind me without offering a shot.
I heard him grunt two or three times, and a friend hunting a nearby coop on the other side of the tags watched a doe squirt out and leg it across an open field with the big buck in hot pursuit.
Oops. Such mistakes can seldom be avoided. It’s reasonably easy to be well prepared for one location, but being ready for any or all eventualities is impossible. That’s why hunting the rut is so easy or so difficult. It all depends on how the animals act.
Scrapes are great hunting spots, but make certain your stand is downwind far enough from it that the buck doesn’t smell you. Bucks often wind-check an active scrape from downwind, and being 40 yards or so downwind can pay off with a good shot. The buck will often appear midway between your stand and the scrape, and within easy bow range.
Sitting on top of or very close to a hot scrape during the pre-rut phase seldom pays off. There will be too much human scent near the scrape. Move the stand farther downwind, and try to pick up the buck as he moves downwind of the scrape to sniff for nearby doe activity.
An active deer scrape is like the local bar. It’s where all the action takes place, and both bucks and does know this. A doe, one that has escaped the attentions of a big buck, will often hang out near the scrape. Bucks often check these scrapes during the pre-rut period. Or, simply follow the does to open farm fields or oak ridges. Find the does, and with luck and persistence, you’ll find the bucks.
This is where bucks often pick up the trail of an estrus doe, and it doesn’t take long for the animal to get on her trail. This chasing phase precedes the actual breeding period of the rut, and the next seven days will be an important time for bow hunters.
There is a certain overlapping of time periods. The pre-rut usually runs from Oct. 20 through Nov. 1, and the peak of the rut takes place anywhere from Oct. 30 through Nov. 15, and the post-run period begins in early December, and only the young does and any older does that weren’t bred earlier, will be serviced by a buck during the late time period.
How can a hunter tell when things shift from prerut to rut? It’s very easy. The scrapes that were once being tended one or more times a day will soon be filled with leaves. That is a sure sign that the rut has begun in earnest. A lack of activity at a scrape is the first clue.
It’s also fairly easy to determine which direction a buck is traveling and at what time of day. As a buck scrapes the ground with his hooves, dirt and ground debris will be piled at one end or another.
If the dirt is piled at the end of the scrape closest to the heaviest cover in the area, that scrape is being tended in late afternoon or early evening as the buck leaves the bedding cover. If the dirt is piled at the end closest to open farm fields, chances are likely this scrape is tended early in the morning as the buck heads back to bedding cover to rest.
Keep in mind that a buck won’t rest much during the rut, which is why a mature dominant buck can lose 20-25 percent of his body weight during the rut. He is running hard, seldom eats, and is always on the move.
One last trick to keep in mind is that one of the best times to hunt during the prerut and rut is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bucks will rest for a few hours, and then be up and going again. They will wind-check an active scrape during the pre-rut, but once the main rut gets underway, they often are on the move day and night.
When bucks are moving, they often are moving fast. Sometimes a loud but short “b-a-a-a-a-t” or two will cause them to stop, apparently thinking that an estrus doe is calling to him. It can give a hunter a brief opportunity for a well-aimed shot.
Knowing where the hot scrapes are is fine, but it’s important to know that a doe may (this can be iffy) lead the buck past a waiting hunter or she may lead him back into the tag alders where getting a shot is nearly impossible. There is a great amount of unpredictability about hunting a big rutting buck.
The rut doesn’t completely addle a buck’s brains although they can and will do some weird things at times. Don’t count on mature does to make many mistakes. A buck may slip up at times, but that seldom happens with does. They can be the stumbling block for many hunters searching for a trophy buck.
If you can shoot a four- or five-year-old doe, particularly if she knows she’s being hunted, the larger bucks will be a bit easier to take. The pre-rut and rut are, other than opening day of the deer season or opening day of the firearm season, are some of the best times to hunt. Bucks can be seen at any time of the day, and it’s when hunters must be ready.
Sometimes the tending grunt of a following buck can be heard, but it’s not something we can always count on. I shot a doe a few days ago, and as it was being fielddressed, I could hear four different bucks grunting as they moved one or more does through the nearby tag alders. It sounded like a barnyard filled with young pigs as they roamed around.
There was no wind that day, and I half-expected a rutting buck to come out somewhere near me.
None did. That was probably because a doe apparently squirted out the other end of the thick cover and took at least one of the bucks with her to some distant area. All I know is I’ll be hunting every day from now on. This is a time of year that bow hunters dream of, so don’t miss a single minute of it.
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Photos
Dave Richey