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Strange deer behavior for late October

I'm seeing the same thing. Bucks are 2-3 weeks behind from last year at this time. I know rut timing stays the same annually so does this information mean we're looking for a quick intense rut?
And just like that things can change in the whitetail woods….I had more scrape activity last night than all season put together till this point. One very familiar old friend made an appearance, better late than never…should be fun!
 
I'm seeing the same thing. Bucks are 2-3 weeks behind from last year at this time. I know rut timing stays the same annually so does this information mean we're looking for a quick intense rut?
Really interesting observations tree_ghost. I guess being as far east as Mboro, your timing/behavior last year was different than ours. Due to the severe drought, we had a rare late rut. And the deer were in such poor shape, we picked up little chasing until right as breeding was kicking off in late November. This year is just like 2021, when we had a bumper acorn crop, although this year is even more exaggerated. In 2021, I picked up a flurry of chasing around food plots Oct. 20 to Nov. 3, but then things went quiet until the rut kicked off at its normal time around Nov. 12. This year, bucks have been chasing since late September, and right now it's just crazy. Does this mean the rut is early? No, just means the deer are in excellent health and have a lot of extra energy to burn.
 
Really interesting observations tree_ghost. I guess being as far east as Mboro, your timing/behavior last year was different than ours. Due to the severe drought, we had a rare late rut. And the deer were in such poor shape, we picked up little chasing until right as breeding was kicking off in late November. This year is just like 2021, when we had a bumper acorn crop, although this year is even more exaggerated. In 2021, I picked up a flurry of chasing around food plots Oct. 20 to Nov. 3, but then things went quiet until the rut kicked off at its normal time around Nov. 12. This year, bucks have been chasing since late September, and right now it's just crazy. Does this mean the rut is early? No, just means the deer are in excellent health and have a lot of extra energy to burn.
So why are some mature bucks still grouped up this late? Granted, sample size of only 4 bucks, all the other mature bucks are by themselves as per usual. But I've NEVER seen any mature bucks grouped up this late in October. August/ early Sept... that is normal. But not now. And not really sure what it means, if anything. Again, everything else is normal... chasing by 1.5 and 2.5y/os. 3.5 and 4.5's working scrapes at night....
 
So why are some mature bucks still grouped up this late? Granted, sample size of only 4 bucks, all the other mature bucks are by themselves as per usual. But I've NEVER seen any mature bucks grouped up this late in October. August/ early Sept... that is normal. But not now. And not really sure what it means, if anything. Again, everything else is normal... chasing by 1.5 and 2.5y/os. 3.5 and 4.5's working scrapes at night....
No idea Mega. It's a crazy year, and I honestly believe this year is still being influenced by last year (in the areas hit hardest by the drought).
 
The ploy would have worked for me. I'd have left him be. But he was too comfortable and made himself too available. My 75yr old dad killed him Wednesday. Biggest buck of his life, albeit one horned.

View attachment 199730
Congratulations to your father. I would like to see the deer that he was fighting that busted his beam.
 
So why are some mature bucks still grouped up this late? Granted, sample size of only 4 bucks, all the other mature bucks are by themselves as per usual. But I've NEVER seen any mature bucks grouped up this late in October. August/ early Sept... that is normal. But not now. And not really sure what it means, if anything. Again, everything else is normal... chasing by 1.5 and 2.5y/os. 3.5 and 4.5's working scrapes at night....

If I had to guess I'd say it's the feast between famines. I've also noticed more older age class than I've ever seen before here in TN, and younger bucks seem to have larger than normal racks. I've been seeing 3yr olds toting racks I usually only see on 4 & 5yr olds. Whatever phenomena that's happening is affecting more than behavior. The only thing that makes sense to me is a nutritional boom. But that's just a guess. Whatever it is I'm enjoying it while it lasts.
 
Congratulations to your father. I would like to see the deer that he was fighting that busted his beam.
We had a giant in 2021 that broke off half his rack. We called him "moose" because of how thick and palmated his antlers were. I would have paid money to see who broke his off. It broke between 10/29 - 11/2.
 
If I had to guess I'd say it's the feast between famines. I've also noticed more older age class than I've ever seen before here in TN, and younger bucks seem to have larger than normal racks. I've been seeing 3yr olds toting racks I usually only see on 4 & 5yr olds. Whatever phenomena that's happening is affecting more than behavior. The only thing that makes sense to me is a nutritional boom. But that's just a guess. Whatever it is I'm enjoying it while it lasts.
I haven't seen huge improvements in the antlers of older bucks, but my yearlings have better racks than I've seen in years. Yearling spike incidence is way down, and I've got several 7 and 8-point yearlings.
 
I haven't seen huge improvements in the antlers of older bucks, but my yearlings have better racks than I've seen in years. Yearling spike incidence is way down, and I've got several 7 and 8-point yearlings.

Same. The old guys have their normal racks. It's the younger deer with bigger than normal racks, which I'm hoping translates into even bigger racks at maturity.
 
Very, very strange. I'm still getting videos of groups of bucks in food plots feeding and sparring, but the minute a doe shows her face, off they go chasing her. I hardly have a video of a doe group calmly feeding. All I get is zoom, zoom, zoom, bucks chasing does everywhere through the plots and through the woods. And it isn't just the yearlings chasing, it's all the bucks. I have never seen so much chasing this early.

Scraping has exploded. Scrapes everywhere.
The highway by my house is bloody in many places with dead dear
 

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