Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Serious Deer Talk Forum Bucks back together

Our rut is now about kick off. Crazy how it varies

I’m actually for any reg changes that support the resource health and quality of hunting days (not quantity of hunting days).

Again, that’s not on my places. I’ve never seen them shed antlers before March, usually April.

What counties N2Turkeys?

Here’s a post I made on FB last year on Feb 2

At the end of the year it’s a matter of “total buck harvest” whether they have a half rack or a whole rack……The question is…..”Are too many bucks being killed?”……In every other conversation we have the same folks hollering that everything is awesome.....So many one fiddies hitting the ground its mind blowing…….

Most north Alabama counties are adding an additional 3-8% onto the buck harvest in the 10 days of Feb depending on the county……Let’s call it 6% across the board……If 14% of those have no racks then we’re talking about something like 0.8% of the buck harvest that this shedding thing is impacting…..Probably not even that much considering that only a few places in North Alabama are currently shedding…..In reality its probably more like 0.2% of the harvest or something like that…….Again the real question is about the extra 3-8% total being killed…..Is it too many??

Yes it’s too many

In our zone, the 20th would be my end date, if I were king.
Maybe 23-24th if it’ll give people another weekend. Take one week off the old date and I’d be ok.
January 24th. Certainly I’m talking about just in our zone.

I don’t think anybody in charge really cares though…

I always see the posts like “if you don’t like the Feb extension then just don’t hunt it”. I don’t, but that doesn’t help carry over age structure that should make it to next year when your neighbor is shooting starving 3 year olds that are finally showing up at his $99 wildgame feeder. Btw, that $99 and a few bags of corn are probably the full extent of his resource contribution.

Again, I’m aware that there are places where the extension is warranted. But it’s not warranted just because brother-in-law saw a buck chasing a doe in Tuscaloosa County on Feb 20th

I personally know one processor owner that is totally against it and on January 31 each year he shuts his doors. Will not take another deer after then. Hates the antlerless bucks and cleaning does carrying tiny fetuses that he saw when we first went to the February extension. I'm okay with it for the south Bama counties that needs it but for the rest of the state it needs to end 1/31, like it used to be.

I will say this (on the anomaly’s), I was scouting for turkeys late one February and I had an 8 point chase a doe right by me. It was in the last week of Feb.
Then again I’ve had multiple horns pop off the last week of January. So yeah, it varies, but the majority are done by 1/25 imo. After that, people are killing them back on food. My pawpaw swears he had an antlered buck chase a doe by him in turkey season, but we all know that ain’t normal.

I reckon all the midwestern states should cut there season back too, seen a many of shows where the bucks antlers fall off when they shoot them or grab them

They’re also archery only in most of the late season hunts. Most have no baiting. So the chances of late season success are nowhere near like ours, where most are still toting rifles.

The ones I’m referring to are muzzleloader and those new ones shoot as far as any high powered rifle and they’re bait is standing soybeans

This reminds me of Yogi Berra saying nobody goes to that restaurant anymore, it's too crowded. If no one likes/does it, then is it actually a big problem?FWIW i don't hunt north Alabama so either way is fine with me as long as they leave south Alabama alone.

The deer are just now showing up in the green field.

It sounds like it would be easy to out feed this guy. A larger low pressure (assuming hunting stopped on the 31st) area with food should be able to retain deer vs them heading to the smaller neighbor who is still hunting/pressuring his land.

Yes you’re probably right, though I hate that it turns into a baiting competition. And I’m all for leaving south AL alone for rut opportunity. Start 10 days later and hunt 10 days longer.

It sounds like to me the real issue is the baiting, not the extension of the season. We should be addressing the elephant in the room.

I didn’t like the extension for up here but I understand far south it may be just getting good. I’ve been done with it and figure some getting ready for fishing and turkeys. Got one 8 point I see fairly regular and he’s pretty skinny now so he can continue breeding what he can and maybe see him next year when he’s put some weight back on. I’m like mentioned before just use self control and be done. Changing rules every other year never satisfies everyone so pretty much just set ur own personal ones. When I guess what is peak rut seems to be over and the activity drops way down in my area it’s just not as fun to me.