Yup that does seem pretty late. But then I saw similar rutting behaviour from a big Mulie this year around December 27. I kinda guessed it might have something to do with how crappy our winter has been (if Mulies can sense such things). Right now the areas I hunt have snow that goes up to my mid-section, which is a huge difference from the mild winter we had last year. How has your winter been in MD?

I don’t think it has much to do with weather. I think what you are seeing is a”late drop” fawn that has matured later than the rest of the crop and that has sent every availble buck into a last ditch rutting tizzy. Think about this. If the doe is successfully bred, her fawn will drop “late” too. That means it will develop late the next season and the cycle repeats itself, assuming it survives.

Just my 2 cents…

Duncan wrote: I don’t think it has much to do with weather. I think what you are seeing is a”late drop” fawn that has matured later than the rest of the crop and that has sent every availble buck into a last ditch rutting tizzy. Think about this. If the doe is successfully bred, her fawn will drop “late” too. That means it will develop late the next season and the cycle repeats itself, assuming it survives.

Just my 2 cents…

Duncan is correct and…any doe not bred in November will come into estrus again in December which is why it is sometimes called the “second rut” in some areas. If the doe is still not bred in December, she will often come in heat again in January.

Ireland

I also agree with Duncan but there could be other factors. As Ireland said does that are not bred during Nov will come into estrus again in Dec. Buck to doe ratios can affect this also. Our entire rut is rifle season and areas with heavy pressure have poor buck/doe ratios and I think some does do not get bred due to no buck available during the small time frame necessary. A buck out looking for does during the Nov rut here has a short life expectancy. We often see rut activity in Dec.

Regarding late horn drops. This could be related to does in late estrus, high testosterone levels in bucks help keep the horns on I think.

JT said “3 bucks come in that still were in velvet”

Over the years I’ve heard of an occasional buck with velvet much later than normal but 3 from the same area at the same time is a bit wierd I think.

Some things to consider:

1. Is there a toxic waste dump, nuclear reactor, or meth lab in the area.

2. There could be a serial castrater on the loose, better get em soon or there will be no fawns.

3. Maybe it is global warming?

Seriously, a friend of mine shot a big bull elk that had some deformities in that area and he is covinced there are other bulls that can’t perform and therefore don’t bugle and participate in the rut which in turn allows them to live longer and grow larger.

It is a strange world it seems and ya just never know.