As the rutting moon arrives and the rut intensifies, three distinct types of scrapes show up: boundary, random and primary. Charles Alsheimer was one of the first to define the terms and document this intricate whitetail behavior when D&DH published his article, “Hunting Whitetails with White Lightning” in the late 1970s. In the article he explained how he doctored scrapes with the estrous secretions from Holstein cows. The tactic not only worked, it helped kickstart the whitetail scent industry.
Through his observations, Alsheimer identified the following types of scrapes:
Boundary scrapes: Scrapes that are made randomly as bucks travel through their territory. These scrapes often show up along the edges of fields, fencerows and old roadways. Those made along field edges are nearly always made at night. Because of this, Alsheimer paid little attention to these scrapes except for checking the track sizes. He said if the track is more than 2 1/4 inches wide (with no more than a 1/4-inch split in the toes) the buck probably is over 2 1/2 years old and nearing maturity. Such bucks also will tip the scales at over 175 pounds in the North.
Random scrapes: Scrapes that are made spontaneously as a buck cruises his territory. A buck will often make a random scrape whenever he comes upon an attractive licking branch and is “moved” to work the site. Seldom will they be reused and in most cases are not serious candidates for a hunting setup.
Primary scrapes: “These are the ones hunters need to pay attention to. In many ways they are the “mother lode” of whitetail scrapes, with some having the potential of becoming the true ‘bus station’ for white-tailed bucks,” Alsheimer reported.
Primary scrapes are normally found in strategic locations, inside corners, ridgelines and especially along well-worn trails between bedding and feeding areas during the rut. In many instances, bucks will make a line of scrapes (20 to 50 yards apart) along such trails. Because many primary scrapes are found along well-worn trails, more than one buck will work and rework them during the three phases of the rut.
“I’ve made a career of hunting and killing bucks along well-used trails,” Alsheimer said. “I’ve probably killed more bucks over primary scrapes along well-used runways than any other place.”
Charles J. Alsheimer was a preeminent expert on deer behavior and collaborated on groundbreaking research on the moon’s impact on whitetail breeding patterns. He authored seven best-selling books and hundreds of magazine articles on the whitetail. He served as field editor of Deer & Deer Hunting magazine for nearly 38 years and as host of Deer & Deer Hunting TV, which aired on the Outdoor Channel, before his untimely passing in 2017. His work on deer behavior was ahead of its time.