Blacktail rut, when and how long?

[tbrady]

Hey Guys,

I've got next to no experience hunting Blacktails but a ton hunting Whitetails so please forgive the noobie question...  What time of year do they generally rut around here and is it usually about 2 weeks long?

And... do the bucks leave sign similar to Whitetails, e.g. using scrapes etc.

Thanks for any insight!

[bobcat]

Blacktails don't make "scrapes" on the ground like whitetails, but they do make "rubs" on trees. The rut is generally about the first two weeks of November.

[lokidog]

Saw a buck glued to a doe this morning.

[WSU]

Pre-rut is starting now and is what a lot of people refer to as the rut.  Bucks are starting to move around now. 

[fish vacuum]

They'll start pre rut activity roughly the last week of October. By the last few days of the month there should be a lot of roaming and tree rubbing.

[lokidog]

Pre-rut is starting now and is what a lot of people refer to as the rut.  Bucks are starting to move around now.

Pre-rut is better anyways since they are mostly not glued to a doe's butt, but are out cruising.

[D-Rock425]

It will all start November 1st.

[preacherman]

I find that it is heavily related to the weather, last year it started a full week and a half earlier here than the previous year. They are starting now, on Whidbey Island to follow the does. It seems to that the bigger bucks start first?
I am not an avid blacktail hunter per say, but I have never pulled a tag and not filled it.

[lokidog]

I agree, I think last year was a bit earlier as my buck was a bit "rutty" tasting taken early in the second week.

[preacherman]

Lokidog- one of these days we will have to get coffee or something.

Back on topic

It seems to me that when it starts getting cold they start?

[JimmyHoffa]

It will all start November 1st.

  The daylight rut!  Anything before that begins half hour after sunset and runs until a half hour before sunrise. 

[lokidog]

Lokidog- one of these days we will have to get coffee or something.

   Just stop by.....   

[tbrady]

It will all start November 1st.

Hmm, so once again someone leaked the reg's to them huh?  I've thought about altering a few copys and accidentally "dropping" them in the areas I hunt to throw them off.

[lokidog]

It will all start November 1st.

Hmm, so once again someone leaked the reg's to them huh?  I've thought about altering a few copys and accidentally "dropping" them in the areas I hunt to throw them off.

  

[bobcat]

The rut is the same time every year, it doesn't change dates based on the weather. Although the weather may affect how much rutting activity we witness during the daylight hours.

[preacherman]

Funny lokidog I will swim out there sometime.

I don't believe that the dates are the same. Even cattle, hogs, rabbits, birds, etc. breed based on temp. I don't know everything about deer, but I would have to see some real study by a PHD. to believe that temp/ weather has no role in it. 

[jackmaster]

the bucks are already ready, i have seen 3 bucks that are swelled up and ready, it is all up to the doe now, and this year where i hunt the rut is earlier than last year by a long shot, when the doe come in heat then you will definatly see an increase in deer traffic, the trails will get alot more beat up, what strikes me this year as odd is the fat layers on some of these bucks that have been killed and it could have somethn to do with the earlier increase in blacktail movement, i think it might be a bad winter heading are way, i havent seen movement or fat layers like this in quite a few years, i think it will be a good season for alot of blacktail hunters, but more to the op, blacktail have some real uncommon traights that whitetails and muleys dont have but when they start thinkn with their dumbstick then all bets are off.....

[Tree Killer]

The rut is the same time every year, it doesn't change dates based on the weather. Although the weather may affect how much rutting activity we witness during the daylight hours.

 

I don't know if Washington is the same as down here in Oregon, but the deer in the valley and foothills seem to start rutting a little earlier then the bucks higher in the Cascades.  The coastal areas and valley fringes are usually going hot and heavy by the end of October, first week of November. But the higher country where the deer are migration oriented seem to peak in the 18th to 20th of November. 

Just my observation from 45 years of Blacktail hunting.   

[sirmissalot]

The rut is the same time every year, it doesn't change dates based on the weather. Although the weather may affect how much rutting activity we witness during the daylight hours.

 

I don't know if Washington is the same as down here in Oregon, but the deer in the valley and foothills seem to start rutting a little earlier then the bucks higher in the Cascades.  The coastal areas and valley fringes are usually going hot and heavy by the end of October, first week of November. But the higher country where the deer are migration oriented seem to peak in the 18th to 20th of November. 

Just my observation from 45 years of Blacktail hunting.   

Yup I completely agree.

I also disagree that the rut is always the same dates. From what I've seen this year the rut is running a tad late, last year it was a tad early. I've seen the pre rut kick in the first week of hunting season before, and by the end of the month they were completely stuck on does. A lot of mature bucks notched the tags of hunters that year, frustrating for me since I was an archery hunter.

The buck I killed last night was swelled up but not paying any attention to does and really didn't stink much.

[hillbillyhunting]

I think the timing of the rut mostly has to do with photoperiod (amount of daylight).  If I am correct then in a way it would happen around the same dates every year, but you have to consider variations depending on other factors such as weather.  I think the weather contributes to the timing mostly because it affects the photoperiod.  It is very dark out in the middle of the day with this weather we have been having, and I cant see very well even though my pretty good binoculars at the beginning/end of "legal" shooting light.   

[tbrady]

Do you guys typically see more activity in the mornings or the afternoon/evenings?  Thanks for all the great info already!

[bobcat]

Here's something I Googled up. It's for whitetail deer, but it applies to blacktail deer just the same.

Peak rut represents an annual high point for deer hunters and the bucks they pursue. It’s not surprising that predicting when it will occur is the hottest topic in whitetail hunting.

Theories abound, based on a host of factors including temperature, barometric pressure, wind speed, type and amount of precipitation, moon phase, the earth’s gravitational pull and the brown and white bands on a wooly bear caterpillar.

The fact is, predicting when the peak of rut will occur is not difficult, and there’s no secret formula.

Whitetail breeding is based on photoperiodism — changes in the amount of daylight. Because fall daylight diminishes at the same rate and time every year, the rut happens at the same time, with very little exception. That’s no casual affirmation. It’s based on years of research from every state and province where whitetails live.

If you want to know when the peak of the rut occurs, you don’t need meteorological charts or crystal balls. Call your state biologist, or read on. We’ve done it for you.

For more, go here:   http://mathewsinc.com/21443/as-reliable-as-the-sun-our-biologist-examines-the-rut-peaks-across-the-country/

[AKBowman]

the bucks are already ready, i have seen 3 bucks that are swelled up and ready, it is all up to the doe now, and this year where i hunt the rut is earlier than last year by a long shot, when the doe come in heat then you will definatly see an increase in deer traffic, the trails will get alot more beat up, what strikes me this year as odd is the fat layers on some of these bucks that have been killed and it could have somethn to do with the earlier increase in blacktail movement, i think it might be a bad winter heading are way, i havent seen movement or fat layers like this in quite a few years, i think it will be a good season for alot of blacktail hunters, but more to the op, blacktail have some real uncommon traights that whitetails and muleys dont have but when they start thinkn with their dumbstick then all bets are off.....

In regards to how fat the bt's are this year. I wrote about this earlier this summer but I have no doubt in my mind that it has EVERYTHING to do with the ice storm that hit late last winter. It was amazing at the amount of food that was now available for the deer. BT's eat a lot of moss and lichen and the like and the ice storm made so much of that stuff available to them it was unreal. We're seeing the results of that now with deer with large amounts of fat built up from a late winter, spring and summer of easy pickins

[bobcat]

The 2 point blacktail my cousin got opening day was healthy, but not an ounce of fat on him. None.   

[jackmaster]

The 2 point blacktail my cousin got opening day was healthy, but not an ounce of fat on him. None.   

where was your buddys deer killed bobcat if it is ok to say, i have seen a couple that have been killed out of the mashel and they are really fat, it does make sense what akbowman said about there being more feed for them, i was just always under the assumption that fat layers had somethn to do with the coming winter, but if your buddies had zero fat then that probably shoots that theory all to hell 

[bobcat]

It was in the Skookumchuck unit on private land (not Weyerhaeuser.)

[lokidog]

As mentioned, the rut is primarily triggered by photo period but other factors influence it as well, such as weather, feed quality, and other population dynamics like buck to doe ratios.

I think the fat layer mostly depends on food availability and quality and how much energy they have to expend in day to day living since the deer will eat what they can when they can.  A good fat layer simply means that the deer in that area have had good feed and low disturbance.

Our local deer have changed their behavior substantially in the last couple days.  I have not seen the usual numbers of does and many fewer bucks, even behind the house.  My apples have gone for hours without being eaten. 

[Kc_Kracker]

everyone keeps saying they are running around now, but in the last week i stopped seeing even the does, have not seen a single deer in a week   

[bobcat]

You don't see them because they're mostly active at night while you're at home in bed.

Then during the day when you're in the woods hunting, the deer are in their beds, in the brush where you can't see them.

Frustrating, isn't it?     

[headshot5]

When the rut is on, it is an all day long (seeing BT's moving in the woods) thing.  Generally right after/at dark you see them crossing highways etc, but the hunting is good all day if you are in the right area.   

Do you guys typically see more activity in the mornings or the afternoon/evenings?  Thanks for all the great info already!

[Rbob]

Leave the candy at home and hunt Halloween, its worked well in the past!

[Kc_Kracker]

When the rut is on, it is an all day long (seeing BT's moving in the woods) thing.  Generally right after/at dark you see them crossing highways etc, but the hunting is good all day if you are in the right area.   

then i guess i cannot find a good area because i have not seen a single deer in over a week   

[bobcat]

Well,the rut actually starts right after hunting season is over. Try going out during elk season, that's when you'll see the big bucks.     

You know it's not by accident that they have the deer season set when they do. Regular season ends just before the rut, and late season begins just after the rut is over.

[Rbob]

Take a drive down any out of town road and when you see a sign that says "deer crossing next 2 miles", park and work that section of woods. They put those signs up for a reason.

[HUNTINCOUPLE]

Well,the rut actually starts right after hunting season is over. Try going out during elk season, that's when you'll see the big bucks.     

You know it's not by accident that they have the deer season set when they do. Regular season ends just before the rut, and late season begins just after the rut is over.

That is so true! Seen more big blacktails rifle elk huntin than in october!

[jackmaster]

Well,the rut actually starts right after hunting season is over. Try going out during elk season, that's when you'll see the big bucks.     

You know it's not by accident that they have the deer season set when they do. Regular season ends just before the rut, and late season begins just after the rut is over.

as to the poster saying he must not be in a good spot, well her are some questions, have you seen deer in your spot before the last couple weeks? did you see any bucks in there when it was summer and they were more viseable due to tender antlers? what hours are you hunting? are you seeing fresh sign at all, doesnt matter if its sign made at night as long as there is fresh sign? like some of us have said, huntn blacktails is differant by a long shot from whiteys and muleys, they can be very frustrating and damn near impossible to figure out, and thats why it is such an awesome deer to hunt...

[lokidog]

Had a buck 20' from my truck this morning, never even looked at me when I stopped.  80 yards out in front of him was a doe that he was following.

[buckster]

^^^yeah thats great. saw three does yesterday not a one buck in sight..

[hillbillyhunting]

^^^yeah thats great. saw three does yesterday not a one buck in sight..

No sign of the rut for me today.  I had to work hard to see the does.  Saw about 11 deer in the daylight.  Saw a decent 2pt 3 minutes after legal shooting light in my headlights.  I had to quit glassing about 15 min before legal shooting light was up... couldnt see a thing.  There were no bucks with the does and no other deer with the buck.  I saw an old classmate of mine taday, and he showed me a picture of a masher 2x3... revert for sure... and he had a big neck and he said he was rutted up for sure.   That buck was shot on opening weekend   

[Cascade_fisher]

We are getting some rub lines started but not seeing the bucks.  The does seem to have bumped their yearlings away and separated so it is soon.  It does seem a little later than last year which was a few days earlier than "standard".

I basically border Marckworth forest just for reference and have been going out everyday but will be going to our Skykomish area honey hole this weekend.  The wife has a MS tag so can hunt the "yard" in late season archery for us if I can't connect.

Good luck to everyone!

[AKBowman]

Made it out for an hr tonight saw a lone doe on the way in, saw two more on the walk out in the real bad light then saw another on te drive out. No bucks but the deer were moving, I'm loading the piss out of the woods with piss tomorrow, rattling, grunting and doe bleats. Throwing the kitchen sink at em'!

[D-Rock425]

Its official today is the first day of the blacktail rut.

[lokidog]

Its official today is the first day of the blacktail rut.

 

Lots of tree rubs showed up last week, saw a couple bucks walking around in trances, one regular buck behind the house showed up yesterday with a broken antler point.