By Eric Bruce

More than a month ago, Josh Earp was hunting on the opening day of Georgia's muzzleloader season in Taylor County. He spotted a buck following a doe and eventually dropped the buck. The giant 12-pointer (above) weighed 236-pounds dressed and scored 187 inches.

Why was this monster buck trailing a doe on October 15, when the peak of the rut for Georgia is in mid-November?

Bucks are ready to breed as soon as their antlers harden, but they have to wait for the does to enter estrus. Some eager bucks will check out does hoping one will be early, and sometimes they are. Throughout the fall we get reports from time to time of bucks chasing does and related rutting activity. I reported earlier that a South Carolina hunter saw five bucks chasing a doe in early October.
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By Eric Bruce

Overall Activity Status: Movement is very good in most of the South. The weather has remained cool with some frosty mornings and only occasional warm afternoons. The rut in Arkansas, South Carolina, Georgia, and some of Louisiana is raging right now, so deer are deer up and moving.
 
Fighting: In states where the rut is on, some fighting will occur between bucks that are after the same estrous doe. In the pre-rut states, they will bang heads over territory. In both cases, some rattling is likely to lure in a buck.
 
Rub making: Rub making is increasing in the pre-rut states of Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi. With the rut in the near future, bucks are actively rubbing and preparing for action. In Arkansas, South Carolina, Georgia, and Louisiana, there is less rubbing because bucks are doing more seeking, chasing, and breeding. Most rubs I have seen have been old. I did see one rub that appeared fresh at Cedar Creek Wildlife Management Area in central Georgia, but the majority look weeks or months old. [ Read Full Post ]

By Eric Bruce

Overall activity status: The rut is here and activity is peaking in Louisiana, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Georgia. Pulling into my Georgia driveway Thursday afternoon, I watched a six-pointer chase a doe across my yard. On the way to our hunting property, we spotted several deer out feeding in fields and along the road. Even in states not yet in pre-rut, the lower temperatures have deer more active.

Fighting: Fletcher Culpepper’s brother heard two bucks fighting on their Worth Co., Georgia property. The next day Fletcher hunted in the same area and shot a monster buck (photo above, details below). With the rut gearing up, bucks will be fighting for the chance to breed the does in estrus.
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By Eric Bruce

Georgia, South Carolina, Arkansas, and parts of Louisiana are about to experience the most wonderful time of the year—for deer hunters. It’s very close to the rut, and reports are coming in of bucks chasing and following does in these states, suggesting that the pre-rut phase will soon ease into full rut.

The colder weather has been stimulating deer movement overall, too. Most buck sightings are young to middle-aged bucks after does. Older trophy bucks appear to be waiting for the main event, when the majority of does are in estrus and every buck in the woods is active.

South Carolina's Josh Brown has already taken a nice bow buck and is looking forward to some action this week. “There have been a couple guys hunting our lease this week and have seen a good amount of does and a few small bucks,” Josh reports. “They have seen good sign such as scrapes and rubs. But they have not seen a big guy all week."
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By Eric Bruce

The pre-rut can be one of the most exciting and rewarding times of the season to hunt. With cooler weather arriving, acorns falling, and bucks amping up their activities, even a novice hunter can find and locate hot sign.

But the pre-rut can also be frustrating. Sometimes a bumper acorn crop will scatter the deer and it can be difficult to determine exactly where to hunt.

The other aspect of the pre-rut is the arrival of rubs and scrapes. It can be energizing to see shredded saplings and freshly pawed out scrapes in your hunting area.  But sit over this sign for a few days without seeing the buck and it can quickly become disconcerting. Chances are, the buck is visiting the scrape at night or you’re just missing him. Either way, the tantalizing sign lets you know some bucks are around even if you can’t see one. [ Read Full Post ]

By Eric Bruce

All states in the South have open deer seasons in one form or another. The last to open was Alabama, where archery season began last week.

Things have started off slowly for 'Bama hunters, not surprisingly, as their rut is still months away. Shane Dempsey was in the woods for the Alabama opener and only got to hunt a few hours with no luck. “I talked to several hunters and movement seems to be slow so far in north Alabama. We have another really good acorn crop this year which is making the deer hard to pattern," Shane reports. "I have found numerous rubs and scrapes, which I suspect is from where the velvet is coming off and bucks are starting to claim their territory.”

However, Shane also noted this: "For the most part, bucks are still in their bachelor groups and haven't yet started breaking up. Hopefully the cooler weather moving into North Alabama this weekend will get the deer moving a little better.”
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