Ohio Valley Outdoors Magazine

Pre-Rut Mania

By Tommy Kirkland

Every fall season hunters take to the woods – searching for that one particular deer they’ve been hoping to score. Yet understanding the area you’re hunting is vital and scouting and observing whitetail signs are a must before success can be achieved, especially when the pre-rut kicks in.

All spring and summer, whitetails are fairly predictable if adequate nutrition and cover are provided for them. Unless predators are consistently in the area and human activity is occurring, whitetails tend to make circuits – going from one food source to another and periodically bedding in preferred secluded sites. But all these habits begin to change once bucks shed the velvet and begin to batter trees and tear up the ground.

Although bucks do tend to still utilize some of their summertime bedding and foraging areas during the pre-rut, the shift in seasons will undoubtedly change some of their movements as well as their behaviors. A rise in testosterone dictates to male deer to start investigating does; and though the pre-rut isn’t as intense as the chasing times of the rut’s peak, bucks will increase their interest in female deer.

Bucks can easily detect doe urine by scenting. Then with what is commonly called the “lip curl”, they will attempt to get the doe urine to reach the vomeronasal organ. This natural gland is located in the roof of the buck’s mouth. Even if a doe isn’t near estrous, it is believed that this process triggers a buck’s breeding instincts – causing them to traverse the land, creating scent communication of rubs and scrape sites.

During pre-rut, bucks will still bed periodically to conserve energy and to rejuvenate themselves. Here, they will also digest foods consumed earlier. If the weather is hot and dry, pre-rut activity diminishes greatly and bucks may go back to a summertime routine. Yet, when moisture sets in and the days are cooler, then the animals will start pre-rut behaviors once again. These are the times to observe and scout and if harvest days are permitted, by all means work to bag a buck.

Bucks can be taken early in the season – especially if they’re still utilizing prime feeding locales; and of course knowing where the does are concentrating is undoubtedly going to add to your success; whether your pursuit is a buck or antlerless deer. Here again, unless human activity or predators are influencing doe herds, deer are going to be where the food and secure bedding lies.

The pre-rut time stimulates bucks to increase rubbing and scraping behaviors. Bucks, particularly older dominant ones, will begin traveling certain routes. These corridors may even be used continuously year after year by rutting bucks instinctively pronouncing their presence to other bucks and does. Though bucks may not navigate the path exactly, they will undoubtedly move on it and adjacent to it - occasionally crossing over it. Here they will work old scrape sites and make new ones in the immediate vicinity as well.
Although there is hunter and biologist controversy as to whether bucks will use the same scrape or rub from year to year and if younger bucks will utilize the same scrape or rub marked by a dominant buck; rest assured, knowing the traveling routes of scrape sites is a must for pre-scouting a still hunt. Of course, too much scouting activity can disrupt bucks. Also, masking your scent is very critical when entering the animals’ turf.

Simply, you do not want to constantly walk along a buck’s path; therefore, observing where bucks come and go from will give you some idea of where bucks are working scrapes. Typically, knowing where bucks enter or leave a field is most likely going to be the route for scrape activity to unfold.
Scrapes are used for scent communication not only amongst bucks competing for does, but female deer will investigate scrape sites. Here, some biologists believe that the doe will select her particular mate through the scent communicated at a scrape site.

Finally, though it is controversial and difficult if not impossible to determine how many bucks may traverse a line of scent communication, bucks of all ages do investigate the scrapes performed by mature dominant bucks. At times, a buck, young or old, may just briefly scent a signpost scrape and move on. Other times, the buck may perform scraping behavior over the previously scent marked scrape. This confirms that whitetails do not have a definite pattern with scraping. Despite bucks and their grand display, when it comes to scent communication during the pre-rut, female deer activity generally tend to dictate where and when bucks go psycho on trees.
Whitetail behaviors can be simple and yet complex and diverse. Though we’ll never fully comprehend their carousel of social mating behavior, some understanding of their pre-rut actions will not only help in a successful harvest, it should make us appreciate the animal, the outdoors, and our deer hunting tradition.