[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/secrets-of-the-second-rut\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/secrets-of-the-second-rut\/","headline":"Secrets of the Second Rut","name":"Secrets of the Second Rut","description":"Unfortunately, Sweet November is a thing of the past and so too is the rut, unless of course, you live...","datePublished":"2016-12-02","dateModified":"2018-06-12","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/author\/hagosto\/#Person","name":"Hector Agosto","url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/author\/hagosto\/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7bfedbdc5ef3ed8f8df91eb37e1ffbe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7bfedbdc5ef3ed8f8df91eb37e1ffbe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Legendary Whitetails","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"http:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-legendary-whitetails.png","url":"http:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/logo-legendary-whitetails.png","width":522,"height":226}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Rutting-Buck.jpg","url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Rutting-Buck.jpg","height":800,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/secrets-of-the-second-rut\/","about":["Hunting"],"wordCount":1242,"keywords":["Hunting","Hunting Strategy","Tips"],"articleBody":"Unfortunately, Sweet November is a thing of the past and so too is the rut, unless of course, you live in the south.\u00a0 Those of us who are still left with a tag burning a hole in our pocket are now tasked with battling the cold and last light deer movement. Don\u2019t fret just yet, the best hunting might still be to come.How you ask? The answer is the SECOND RUT!Unlike the rut, not much is written about the second rut.\u00a0 It\u2019s more or less a phenomenon many deer hunters like to throw around and discuss when talking about late-season hunting, but in order to truly hunt the second rut, one must first understand it.When is the Second Rut?Quite simply, the second rut occurs almost exactly one month after typical peak breeding.\u00a0 For states and Canadian provinces north of the 35th parallel, peak breading typically occurs sometime between November 5th– 25th. Thus, the second rut is likely to occur between December 5th-25th respectively.What Causes the Second Rut?The second rut is put into motion due to one of two things.\u00a0 First, you need to have does that weren\u2019t bred on their first go-around.\u00a0 Does that were not bred during their first estrous cycle, cycle again 28 days later causing another flurry of buck activity.\u00a0 The second factor that will cause an onset of rutty behavior is fawns becoming receptive.\u00a0 Fawns attain sexual maturity when they top a specific weight threshold.\u00a0 In the south, this is typically around 70 pounds and in the north, they must reach approximately 80 pounds to become receptive.\u00a0 There you have it, in order to experience a second rut, you must have healthy fawns and previously un-bred does.Herd and Habitat Influencers of the Second Rut1 \u2013 Fawns Reaching Sexual MaturityMost hunters believe it\u2019s 2nd cycling does that are responsible for the onset of the second rut.\u00a0 While they certainly can and do, fawns play a much larger role than you may think.\u00a0 In an article put forth by the QDMA, Kip Adams writes:\u201cDeer herds with access to abundant high-quality forage and light to moderate winters can have breeding in more than 50 percent of their doe fawns. Conversely, deer herds exposed to poor habitat or severe winters often have less than 5 percent of their doe fawns reach the threshold weight and breed.\u201dTo sum things up, the better the deer habitat, the more likely you\u2019ll be to experience a second rut.2 \u2013 High Doe ConcentrationsLike we mentioned in the previous point, most believe it\u2019s the does that didn\u2019t get bred during the first rut that are responsible for the second rut.\u00a0 To be clear, this is not a false notion, but it doesn\u2019t happen as much as one might think.\u00a0 Let\u2019s be honest, bucks are pretty darn good at sniffing out stinky does.One reason you may experience a more intense second rut is if your deer herd is out of whack in terms of BUCK:DOE ratio.\u00a0 If your area has upwards of two or three does to every buck, there\u2019s a good chance some does get missed during the first rut, simply because there\u2019s plenty of other does to keep the bucks busy.\u00a0 This is the same reason the first rut may not seem as intense in areas with high DOE:BUCK ratios, as the bucks don\u2019t have to travel very far to find a receptive doe.\u00a0 The more balanced the herd, the more intense the first rut is, and the less likely a doe is to cycle a second time.\u00a0 Bottom line, if you hunt in an area with high doe concentrations, the second rut could be even better than the first, as there\u2019s less receptive does for bucks to find.3 \u2013 Big Woods CountryHere\u2019s something that doesn\u2019t get discussed very often when reading about the second rut.\u00a0 As you read in the first point dealing with fawn weights, habitat can play a large role in deer behavior and activity.\u00a0 While the first habitat influencer dealt with the health of a deer herd, this one deals with the amount of cover available for deer.Think of it this way, would it be easier to play a game of hide and seek in fragmented farm country with pockets of cover splattered across the landscape, or in a seemingly never ending block of timber? If I was the seeker (a.k.a. buck) looking for the hider (a.k.a. doe), I\u2019d much prefer to look in the fragmented farmland versus the big timber.\u00a0 In much of the Midwest, bucks can easily bounce from pocket to pocket scent checking for receptive does.\u00a0 Thus, the majority of does are sniffed out and bred during their first estrous cycle.\u00a0 Compare this to big timber country like you have in the Upper Great Lakes region, Appalachians, and Ozarks where it\u2019s much more difficult for a buck to seek out a doe due to the vast amount of cover available, not to mention less deer in general for the most part.\u00a0 Now you have a scenario where some does get missed during the first rut, and VOIL\u00c0! You are in line for a more intense second rut.Hunting the Second RutOver the next couple of weeks, doe fawns will be cresting the weight threshold for sexual maturity and un-bred does will be cycling for a second time, kicking off what is known as the second rut.\u00a0 Focus on hunting areas where you noticed a lot of doe fawns feeding early in the year.\u00a0 Unlike adult does, doe fawns usually aren\u2019t yet smart enough to seek thick cover when they come into heat, thus, they continue their daily routine, which means hunt the food \u2013 a smart option whether there\u2019s a second rut or not during the late-season.Another advantage to hunting the second rut is you can be bold with your moves.\u00a0 With less than a month left of the season in most states and provinces, you don\u2019t have much to lose at this point in the game.\u00a0 Maybe you were tinkering around the edges or only hunting the absolute perfect wind direction before, but now\u2019s the time to roll the dice. Get aggressive and you just might tag out after all."},{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"Legendary Whitetail's Blog"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/community.legendarywhitetails.com\/blog\/secrets-of-the-second-rut\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"Secrets of the Second Rut"}}]}]