The habitat is changing drastically over the deer season and the deer are changing right along with it, as well as enduring physiological changes during the rut phases. No one stand is best from opening day to season’s close, and understanding how the deer and habitat are changing is key to staying in deer all season long. Here’s exactly how to do just that.
This is Chapter 13 of Steve Bartylla’s free online book, Understanding Mature Bucks.
Now that we’ve made it through home ranges, core areas, dominance, social stresses, why bucks shift ranges, how bucks deal with the rut, how stressful the rut is on them and winter stresses, as well as how they deal with them, it should come as absolutely no surprise that the dramatic habitat changes, physiological changes in body chemistry and rut cycle combine to create tremendous changes over deer season.
We also touched on how those changes are more defined and pronounced the more severe winter is. Frankly, even get just as far north as central Wisconsin and you can pretty much still set your watch to the changing phases bucks go through during each hunting season, and the farther north/worse the winter the more to the second that clock is set. As also mentioned, I believe due to changing/warmer weather patterns, in the Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohios of the deer world, I’ve noticed those phases have gotten more and more blurry over the past 10 years or so. I’m not sure how exactly one can factor that into all of this, but it is certainly a factor.
With that out of the way, I really must credit my early days of consulting for outfitters with what follows. Back then, most of the hunters were regular guys and girls like us, that scrimped and saved all year (or for years) to be able to go on a dream hunt. Frankly, whether a mid-October unseasonably warm stretch hit or not, this was their dream hunt and it was my job to have stand options to make that a reality.
What this did was force me to develop stand options for every point in season, regardless of the weather conditions. At the same time, I had anywhere from 50–250 hunters telling me what I did right and wrong each season (number varied on how many outfitters I consulted for that year). I shouldn’t even have to tell any of you how beneficial (and painful/humbling, at times) that those trials by fire were to my learning curve.
The Formula for Hunting Whitetail Phases
Early season is all about bucks fattening up for the 25–30% body weight drop that’s ahead in the rut. Because of that, my hunting revolves around food and water, either hunting right on them or the trails I believe Mr. Big is using to get between them and his bedding.
The October Lull is a misnomer of sorts, as the shutdown in deer movement before the rut is very often hunting pressure related. The testosterone levels are still too low to inspire much extra movements. Sure, they’re already scraping like crazy, but most is in the middle of the night. Add pressure and they go more nocturnal real fast, as they don’t have a strong incentive not to. When that’s the case, the only success I’ve consistently had is setting up as close to his bedding as possible, while being just far enough away to remain undetected. Otherwise, one continues hunting the food, UNLESS a good cold front hits. When that’s the case, I hunt the downwind side of the healthiest family group bedding area I know of. No, that cold front doesn’t inspire estrus, but as we’ll touch on in a later chapter, it sure can get the bucks excited and the healthiest family group in the area is the best bet for an early doe.
Peak scrape phase is the last week of October in central Wisconsin. I save specifically hunting scrapes for now on through the chase phase. Sure, most all stands I hunt have natural or mock scrapes around them. What I mean is those stands that are more specifically for hunting scrapes (that creek bottom, ridge or family group bedding area torn up with scrapes, as opposed to that food plot with scrapes around the stand, if that makes sense).
The chase phase is those first five days in November in central Wisconsin. As one goes south, this is the first phase to really blur, as the does just aren’t close to as synchronized in their estrous cycle, as Mother Nature doesn’t punish their poorly timed fawn births with death to the same extent as areas experiencing true winters. However, get in areas facing real winters and these five-ish days are a blast in the woods, as even mature bucks are acting a bit foolish with anticipation. The not quite ready yet/on the cusp of estrous does tend to head for the nastiest cover around in an attempt to hide from being chased, making those thickets good spots to be, as well as those scrapes, and from here on out through peak breading, funnels and doe concentrations.
The peak breeding phase in central Wisconsin is Nov. 5–15. Even here, some does will be bred before and after. That’s just when most are bred. This is all about finding receptive does for Mr. Big. So, I may be hunting a specific buck or not, but I’m hunting does either way and the funnels between them.
From December on, I’m hunting food in the afternoons in one way or another, as that’s what Mr. Big needs, and hunting family group bedding in the mornings, hoping to catch an estrous doe fawn, as that’s what Mr. Big still wants.
Sure, I’m always striving to be rigidly flexible and will adjust at any time. Specifically, when Mr. Big tells me he is ripe for taking on a food plot (or anywhere else), I could care less if it’s the middle of the rut and I should be hunting a doe bedding area. I’m going after Mr. Big. I ALWAYS try to listen when Mr. Big tells me he’s ripe for the pickings.
That said, this is the general approach I take to each season. Mr. Big’s wants, needs and habitat are all changing drastically. I need to have stand options ready for each of those changes. I just outlined how I generally do that.
Lastly, I included the dates for central Wisconsin, despite knowing few of you hunt this area. However, that provides the windows for here. Go north and you can move them back a little. Go south and you can stretch them out, but that will get you in the general ball park. Just adjust from there and you’ll lock it in, or at least as best as it can be these days.
Read Chapter 1: Whitetail Tendencies
Read Chapter 2: Whitetail Home Ranges
Read Chapter 3: How Deer Use Core Areas
Read Chapter 4: When Core Areas Shift
Read Chapter 5: Seasonal Shifts
Read Chapter 6: Family Group Dominance
Read Chapter 7: Male Dominance
Read Chapter 8: Deer Population Dynamics
Read Chapter 9: Deciphering Deer Breeding Phases
Read Chapter 10: Big Deer Breeding Behavior
Read Chapter 11: Whitetail Rut Stress
Read Chapter 12: How Deer Deal With Winter Stress
