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No interest in rut?

It's a weird season for sure. They're rutting as usual but not intensely and it doesn't seem to be their major focus like most years. Sure is making for a tricky hunt. I'm not even sitting rut funnels anymore because I'm not seeing anything. What I am seeing is bucks coming out of bed right before dark and going to the same food sources the does are using. I've not seen a buck yet cruising doe bedding.
 
Same weird stuff here in SW TN. It's the middle of November and I do not have one camera on a scrape. I am having the hardest time finding one, and when I do stumble across one, it is random, small and just seems out of place. Seeing a few deer here and there, getting a few good bucks on camera 2-3 hours after dark and at midnight, but very weird overall. Ofc, the tropical weather we've had to date is not helping matter, and I am finding very few acorns across the landscape overall. Killed a doe this week that was full of green browse, a little corn and a few honey locust seeds. Her tarsals were starting to stain and smell, just a little.
 
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On my farms, bachelor groups really started breaking up 2 days ago in earnest. Now 4.5yos are cruising solo doing their thing (coming off feed and instead actively looking for an estrus doe ). Does are not ready.

does have great body condition despite the drought, so I suspect timing of estrus will only be delayed by a handful of days, despite the bucks behaving like they were a month behind schedule.
 
Ski said:
It's a weird season for sure. They're rutting as usual but not intensely and it doesn't seem to be their major focus like most years. Sure is making for a tricky hunt. I'm not even sitting rut funnels anymore because I'm not seeing anything. What I am seeing is bucks coming out of bed right before dark and going to the same food sources the does are using. I've not seen a buck yet cruising doe bedding.
Click to expand...
I've had zero action in the rut funnel that I normally hunt a lot in November. Its either late this year because of dry hot weather(I know alot of people on here think its the exact same time every year no matter what) or it is a trickle rut and some of it happened in early October when it was cooler and then some it will happen the next couple weeks. I normally have chasing going on now until December and so far nothing.
 
Nor sure why, but been weird here for sure. Just not seeing anywhere near the numbers of deer nor the typical activity i see this time of year. Even camera activity on scrapes is off.

I am already kind of regretting passing on the buck I passed up Sunday afternoon.
 
Humphrey County. Monday killed a 2.5 yr old 7 point 13" (trigger happy). Surprisingly,
He was still with a 1.5 yr old 3 point.
Acorns scarce. Food plot edges have scrapes every few yards. Lots of night buck pics in scrapes.
 
xatxay said:
Humphrey County. Monday killed a 2.5 yr old 7 point 13" (trigger happy). Surprisingly,
He was still with a 1.5 yr old 3 point.
Acorns scarce. Food plot edges have scrapes every few yards. Lots of night buck pics in scrapes.
Click to expand...
Kid on our lease in Humphreys county killed a good 9-pt last Saturday and said he was just feeding by himself. Haven't been in the woods yet but hoping to change that this weekend.
 
I've seen less activity and fewer deer this season since I started hunting years ago. The bucks I've seen have zero interest in the girls. That said, our action usually heats up in late November on our farm, and I'm hoping activity picks up.
 
Been a weird year so far.........no acorns that I can find. The buck I killed Saturday was just feeding and milling around. He wasn't out cruising like normal this time of year. He also didn't have that heavy rut smell like most November bucks. His tarsals were black and had the smell, but most of the bucks I kill this time of year, you can smell them as soon as you walk up to them.
 
I saw some chasing yesterday, but nothing intense. Also had does work through with nothing following them at all.

I also had a shooter buck on the other side of the property refresh a scrape i have a camera on at the exact same time I saw the chasing 😭😭

Then in the afternoon I sat on a acorn flat just off bedding and didn't see a single deer.

Highs in the upper 60's is still no conducive to getting a lot of activity rolling IMO. The cool down after this front should definitely help kick things off more.
 
East TN Bowhunter said:
I've had zero action in the rut funnel that I normally hunt a lot in November. Its either late this year because of dry hot weather(I know alot of people on here think its the exact same time every year no matter what) or it is a trickle rut and some of it happened in early October when it was cooler and then some it will happen the next couple weeks. I normally have chasing going on now until December and so far nothing.
Click to expand...

BSK has mentioned that in years with complete acorn failure the rut can be pushed, but otherwise in normal years the rut happens same time every year. I'm thinking this year might be one of those extreme situations where it got pushed, in some areas at least.
 
xatxay said:
Humphrey County. Monday killed a 2.5 yr old 7 point 13" (trigger happy). Surprisingly,
He was still with a 1.5 yr old 3 point.
Acorns scarce. Food plot edges have scrapes every few yards. Lots of night buck pics in scrapes.
Click to expand...
Very much the same. I've got a few good "back in the woods" scrapes, but the hottest scraping activity is on the edge or very near the edge of food plots. Almost all older bucks seen by hunters have been at last shooting light as the bucks follow does into food plots. Does not receptive. No signs of estrus yet (no "abandoned" fawns wandering around). Very much delayed rut in my area, which is typical for a drought/no-acorn year.
 

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