Ask The Biologist

Not By the Book

Not By the Book

By Bob Humphrey

There is no fixed set of rules on how whitetail breeding takes place.

QUESTION: During the Illinois shotgun season just before Thanksgiving, a hot doe brought three small bucks under my stand. The biggest was a wonky-racked 2-year-old (I guess) that bred her right there. Afterward, all four took off running again. I thought a buck would lock down with a doe for 24 hours or so. That’s not what happened that day. Is everything I’ve read about the rut incorrect?

ANSWER: Gentlemen prefer to take a gal to a nice secluded place to enjoy a little privacy, but it doesn’t always work that way in the whitetail world. Competition is stiff, and if a buck can’t cut a doe away from rival suitors, he’ll take his opportunity when he gets it. This is more common in areas of higher deer density with a lower age structure, usually related to heavy hunting pressure. But it also can occur at the height of peak breeding when older bucks are already occupied with other does. Younger bucks take advantage of any chance to breed, even if they don’t have the experience with how to treat a lady.

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