-
The SH Membership has gone live. Only SH Members have access to post in the classifieds. All members can view the classifieds. Starting in 2020 only SH Members will be admitted to the annual hunting contest. Current members will need to follow these steps to upgrade: 1. Click on your username 2. Click on Account upgrades 3. Choose SH Member and purchase.
-
We've been working hard the past few weeks to come up with some big changes to our vendor policies to meet the changing needs of our community. Please see the new vendor rules here: Vendor Access Area Rules
Live from the saddle 2021
- Thread starter Bigterp
- Start date
They don’t know what’s going on. Lots of studies with contradicting information. It’s interesting though. But yes they brought deer in from all over.
I always thought the general consensus for the cause of the rut was the photoperiod in the day? So wouldn’t the photoperiod be the same for all those deer down there. Interesting for sure! Maybe they don’t know how much they think they know. (Whoever does the studies that is)
Yea that’s the funky part, regardless of what deer you brought from where they should eventually revert back to a standardized rut based on the photo whatever (amount of daylight in day) but that’s clearly not the case in Alabama. I read one article that talked about a secondary reasoning for the rut being when it is is so that the young ones would be able to be old enough to survive the following winter. Since there is not really a harsh environment and the food is plentiful yesr round, there is no additional driver requiring that they repopulate in that time period. It’s really weird. One spot I hunt is broken up into four spots all of which rut after different times, someone try and explain that one too me.
The other downside is that he rut isn’t as “full on” as you would see in other places. Hot does spring up sporadically over a long period and I haven’t seen full on chasing yet from mature bucks. It’s interesting to say the least.
Here in my area of northeast FL talking with other people some say end of Sep and others will say Halloween. The only rut activity I've personally seen was late Dec....over on the west side panhandle that borders bama they say its in Feb...and down south supposedly June/Aug ....Florida has had deer imported also.
I don't believe that the deer that are from another state are sticking to origin state rut at all...that don't make no sense...and then to think offspring born local somehow have a genetic link to a geographic place and time of year..I don't know..but sounds like crazy talk
I don't believe that the deer that are from another state are sticking to origin state rut at all...that don't make no sense...and then to think offspring born local somehow have a genetic link to a geographic place and time of year..I don't know..but sounds like crazy talk
I was listening to a recent podcast with Dr. Marcus Lashley. He didn't get into a lot of detail but mentioned that there could be some other environmental conditions other than winter that are affecting the rut timing down South. He mentioned an area in Florida that the rut seemed to correlate to fawns being born at a time that avoids the wet/flooding season.
There might be some truth to that. I’m currently reading a book about how certain medical conditions exist because they allowed certain populations to survive and procreate in the face of an environmental stressor.
I totally agree with that....u see stuff like that in nature all the time...as "regular" as the hurricanes are I wouldn't be surprised at all that they know. Some of the African herd animals base their breeding and migration on the rain....not surprising north American animals do kinda the same.
If one wanted could just about hunt 6 months of rut in Florida. Start in south Fl and work towards the panhandle as the year progresses. But we also don’t have a real hard rut like some Midwest states. Kind of like just a long dating season.
That would be awesome for someone from a Deep South state (and based on my limited experience quite possibly New England guys), but would absolutely suck for a Midwest guy. The reason being, the “rut” you see down here doesn’t mirror what you see in the Midwest.
LFTS 
had an awful morning getting into the woods with my bad gut. Finally made it in and bumped some does. This made me set up in a different drainage then where I was headed. I didn’t like the visibility once I was in the tree but decided to stay. A hot doe came in and a decent buck wasn’t long behind her. I got him to pause for just a moment and took a shot. He stumbled then got back up with tail down and stumbled along the ridge a good ways. I’m hoping he’s dead. If he is this will be my first decent buck.
had an awful morning getting into the woods with my bad gut. Finally made it in and bumped some does. This made me set up in a different drainage then where I was headed. I didn’t like the visibility once I was in the tree but decided to stay. A hot doe came in and a decent buck wasn’t long behind her. I got him to pause for just a moment and took a shot. He stumbled then got back up with tail down and stumbled along the ridge a good ways. I’m hoping he’s dead. If he is this will be my first decent buck.
He dropped when I shot, got up and then stumbled off with tail down out of sight. I got down and am not finding any blood. Not a good sign.
Things are just starting to heat up down in Southeast Alabama and Southwest Ga and wouldn't you know it The weather is warm as crap I am on trouble call but come off Wednesday and will get after it hard then
Saw him he is alive and well… flat out missed him. Maybe my scope is off or maybe I just suck at shooting.
