The Best Week for Finding a Trophy Buck
Know the Best Day to Bag a Buck
Editor’s
Note: Famed baseball announcer Dizzy Dean once said,
"If you done it, it ain't braggin'." And friends,
I've done it. I've found the magic week to hunt deer
that increases my odds for bagging a trophy buck. You
don't have to bet on moon charts, tide charts, soothsayers
or any hunting aids. But you can bet on experience,
and I have it. Read on to learn how to down a buck during
the best week of the year.
I know the very best day for me to bag a trophy buck.
I have the scientific research and the qualified expert
to unequivocally back me up. Just listen to this statement.
"Sixty percent of the deer bred in Alabama are
bred around February 11 each year," Dr. Keith Causey,
former professor of wildlife science and a wildlife
researcher at
Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama, says. "If
you're ever going to see a trophy buck chasing an estrous
doe, it will be sometime during that week of February
11 in Alabama."
From examining the fetuses of road-killed does and pregnant
does taken for scientific research, wildlife biologists
have back-dated the time of conception based on the
fetuses’ development to the magic date of the
week of February 11. So clear the roads, and put all
the women and children in the house. On February 11,
you'll find me in the woods hunting deer. But wait a
minute -- I can't hunt in February! Since Alabama's
deer season ends on January 31 like many other Southern
states, I can't hunt during the best week of the year
for taking a trophy buck. The peak of the rut in
Alabama, according to Causey, occurs after deer season
has ended.
However, in many states, the peak of the rut happens
during deer season. John Curtis with the New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation, says, "In
a survey we did with 60 fawns taken around Buffalo,
New York, the highest number of fawns were conceived
between November 9 and November 19 with November 12
seeming to be the peak day for conception. The state
did have one fawn conceived on November 25, one on December
10 and one on December 24. However, we biologists believe
that the two December fawns were conceived during those
does' second estrous periods. Although November 12 seems
to be the very best day for bucks to breed does in New
York, I prefer to hunt the week before the peak of the
rut. I believe that the bucks are more active then than
they are during the week when most of the breeding is
taking place."
Lonnie Hansen with the Missouri Department of Conservation
conducted a study for several years on post-dating fawns.
As Hansen explains, "We've found that November
16 is the most-consistent date for the majority of does
in Missouri to breed. During our five-year study, this
date has only varied by one day, either before or after
November 16. Our research indicates that the very-best
day to find bucks breeding does will be on November
16. Since our gun-hunting season usually begins on November
15, our state's first few days of gun deer season are
at a time during the very peak of the rut." If
you live in one of these fortunate states where the
peak of the rut occurs during deer season, let me show
you how to plan your hunting this season to take advantage
of the best week to take a trophy buck.
Tomorrow: Do Your Homework,
and Know You Have A Trophy Buck To Hunt
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