Getting community scrape activity

[flankston]

Thought this was a cool pic - been getting some community scrape activity.

 

[BSK]

My traditional scrapes are still dead as a hammer. A 2 1/2 year-old buck finally opened one of them Wednesday, but the others are dead.

 

[backyardtndeer]

That is a cool pic. Community scrapes are seeing very high activity here as well.

 

[DoubleRidge]

Cool pic! Nice!

 

[DeerCamp]

My traditional scrapes are still dead as a hammer. A 2 1/2 year-old buck finally opened one of them Wednesday, but the others are dead.

How "late" is that for what you typically see?

 

[BSK]

How "late" is that for what you typically see?

Right about latest ever. Worst year ever was the record heat/drought/acorn-failure/EHD year of 2007. In that year, first scrape was Oct. 23 and on 500 acres I found exactly 6 scrapes the entire season (normally I record 60-80). That year was also the only time in 35 years that I firmly believe we saw a very delayed rut. Our normal peak breeding is Nov. 10-20, but that year it appeared to be around the first week of December.

 

[flankston]

My community scrapes are still covered as well. The licking branches are still being hit but no scraping. I tried opening it up to get them started after the cold front but no avail. I'm getting some pictures of bucks but mostly feeding in the fields at night

 

[BSK]

My community scrapes are still covered as well. The licking branches are still being hit but no scraping.

This is what I'm seeing. Both bucks and does are working the overhanging limb, but not working the scrape.

 

[DeerCamp]

Right about latest ever. Worst year ever was the record heat/drought/acorn-failure/EHD year of 2007. In that year, first scrape was Oct. 23 and on 500 acres I found exactly 6 scrapes the entire season (normally I record 60-80). That year was also the only time in 35 years that I firmly believe we saw a very delayed rut. Our normal peak breeding is Nov. 10-20, but that year it appeared to be around the first week of December.

WOW! Crazy to think it would have shifted that much.

I am really considering delaying my trip to Oklahoma this year to Late Nov/Early Dec. As you know, their drought has been exceptional.

Reports from there are that bucks are still in bachelor groups. GW for Hughes County told me that the peak for them is Nov 7-20 or so.
Maybe I'll go twice. :)

 

[backyardtndeer]

Watched 4 different bucks work scrapes and licking branches this morning. Smallest one run urinated in the scrape that he opened.

 

[BSK]

Watched 4 different bucks work scrapes and licking branches this morning. Smallest one run urinated in the scrape that he opened.

Interesting. I'll be checking cams for the last time before MZ tomorrow. Hope I see a sudden change in activity.

 

[backyardtndeer]

Interesting. I'll be checking cams for the last time before MZ tomorrow. Hope I see a sudden change in activity.

What I found to be really interesting was that I had those 4 different bucks at one time all within very close proximity to each other and there was zero sparring and only light posturing between the 1.5 year old and a 2.5 year old. The 2 2.5 year olds didn't seem bothered by each other, but they all gave space to the 3.5.

Before I was in the stand, my camera on one of the scrapelines had 3 different bucks hit the licking branch. I did not see any of those bucks that came through before daylight. They came through between 5:27 and 6:08. Last buck i saw on that line this morning was at 8:33. I had dipped that licking branch in a bottle of active scrape last week.

 

[Ski]

What I found to be really interesting was that I had those 4 different bucks at one time all within very close proximity to each other and there was zero sparring and only light posturing between the 1.5 year old and a 2.5 year old. The 2 2.5 year olds didn't seem bothered by each other, but they all gave space to the 3.5.

I saw the same thing mid early/October except they sparred a little. Been seeing bachelor groups still together all the way up even until this morning. This is the weirdest season ever. I'm not sure what to think of it yet.

 

[BSK]

This is the weirdest season ever. I'm not sure what to think of it yet.

Just one more reminder that once you think you've seen it all, you haven't.

 

[flankston]

BSK - in your experience, how much time goes by between the beginning of scrapes opening up to peak breeding? 3 weeks on average?

 

[Ski]

Just one more reminder that once you think you've seen it all, you haven't.

Yessir that's for sure. I don't think there's another wild animal on the planet that gets singularly studied like the whitetail. There are university programs offering degrees based on it. And still there's so much yet to learn.

 

[BSK]

BSK - in your experience, how much time goes by between the beginning of scrapes opening up to peak breeding? 3 weeks on average?

Depends on the year and the acorn crop. When deer have access to a rich source of high energy foods, they have energy to burn. They literally make a lot more rubs and scrapes because they have so much more excess internal resources. Quite a few studies on this. In an acorn-driven herd, rubbing and scraping behavior is heavily influenced by quantity/quality of the acorn crop.

So in big acorn years, bucks will start scraping in September. Yet the rut doesn't change. However, in a poor acorn year, with limited resources, bucks may not start scraping until mid-October, even though again, peak dates of rut don't change.

What I'm getting at is the start of scraping activity is more driven by food resources rather than rut timing.

 

[Ski]

Depends on the year and the acorn crop. When deer have access to a rich source of high energy foods, they have energy to burn. They literally make a lot more rubs and scrapes because they have so much more excess internal resources. Quite a few studies on this. In an acorn-driven herd, rubbing and scraping behavior is heavily influenced by quantity/quality of the acorn crop.

So in big acorn years, bucks will start scraping in September. Yet the rut doesn't change. However, in a poor acorn year, with limited resources, bucks may not start scraping until mid-October, even though again, peak dates of rut don't change.

What I'm getting at is the start of scraping activity is more driven by food resources rather than rut timing.

That is really interesting. I wonder if it also affects cruising?

 

[BSK]

That is really interesting. I wonder if it also affects cruising?

No idea, but it does effect chasing. I only have one year of video data for a good acorn year and one year for a poor acorn year, but chasing started earlier in the good acorn year, even though the same peak dates of breeding could be seen in the data for both years.

 

[Spurhunter]

I swear I read the title "Gated Community Scrape Activity". I was about to call SeekOne or PM their #1 fanboy.

 

[Ski]

No idea, but it does effect chasing. I only have one year of video data for a good acorn year and one year for a poor acorn year, but chasing started earlier in the good acorn year, even though the same peak dates of breeding could be seen in the data for both years.

Well this is a terrible acorn year in the places I hunt. And this season is proving to be a challenge.

 

[BSK]

Well this is a terrible acorn year in the places I hunt. And this season is proving to be a challenge.

Same here. And scraping behavior was the same as chasing. In fact, scraping behavior peaked in October in the good acorn year, while it didn't really get rolling until early November in the poor acorn year.

 

[Ski]

Same here. And scraping behavior was the same as chasing. In fact, scraping behavior peaked in October in the good acorn year, while it didn't really get rolling until early November in the poor acorn year.

I'll keep my eyes open, but so far scraping isn't happening hardly at all, especially in traditional scrapes.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

I have yet to see a scrape or a rub on our whole place. Granted, I haven't been on over half of it, but plan to do some intrusion this weekend. Will mostly wait until mid-end of next week, as that is usually prime time for our cruising activity. If I were a betting man, I'd say this last weather event got them on the move.

This will be an odd year, in that, when we see a buck, we likely won't know who in the heck he is. That does really excite me, but also worries me on a few with itchy trigger fingers

 

[TNTreeman]

Counted over 12 scrapes around a 5 acre food plot today. One literally under a licking branch from the tree my ladder stand is in . Only saw some small rubs in this same area.

 

[Ski]

Counted over 12 scrapes around a 5 acre food plot today. One literally under a licking branch from the tree my ladder stand is in . Only saw some small rubs in this same area.

Consider yourself a lucky minority. One particular scrape in one of my oldest plots has been running every year for almost a decade until this year. It's yet to be opened up. Does and young bucks check out the licking branch, but no mature action yet.

 

[deerhunter10]

I've heard several saying wierd years for scrapes. Seeing normal activity this year. But we have a good acorn crop, not as good as last year but pretty good. The only thing out of the ordinary is daylight pictures on them. Behind the house a lot of daylight picture the last 7 days. One of our leases northwest of us, they are still hitting them very nocturnal. Pressure is extremely low on both. The difference in rut is usually 7 to 10 days apart on the 2 places to which is crazy only being 25ish miles apart. Deer density is my opinion as we are a lot lower at my house compared to the other lease.

 

[Dumbluck]

I finally had a 2 year old open a scrape on camera 11-2-22. The bucks had been scent checking it for several days. It is usually a community scrape active in early bow season every year, this year it just now got opened up.

 

[TNTreeman]

In typical fashion of early November , the young bucks are starting to harass the does around here.

 

[BSK]

Finally had a few of the traditional scrapes getting opened up, but still no new bucks in weeks. Buck activity is at an all-time low on my place so far.