Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire It seems a little late for bucks to still have antlers

That's beyond secondary rut. First rut here is in September, does won't stand for bucks. The major rut is late October~early November. The third rut is late December, have actually heard of a later rut (rare) in January. The fawns produced from the December/ January rut don't have a high survivability rate for their first winter. Depends on snow cover...

Depends on nutrition and overall health of the buck.

See them till March often and even one time in early April.

Uninjured, start dropping mid Feb here.

Blacktails around here seem to keep them until about March/April when they start growing new ones.

In NJ depending upon the year I;'ve had good bucks drop them in mid-late january and others hold them past Feb.

Antlers still on here in NWNJ

Not unusual here. The biologists put the peak of our rut in the first week of January.

Weekend before I was in the yard just having returned with a trailer full of a ton of gravel....

dozen does come running by.. like something had them spooked.... looked in that direction for a coyote or something...

instead come running past me and never even looked at me was a Blacktail buck... he stopped long enough like 20 yds from me
to count the 7 points on each antler.... he crossed the creek, the does took off again....

guess the rut is still in full swing down here in So. Oregon...

Saw a fork horn blacktail buck yesterday on the Olympic Peninsula, with a doe, still had antlers on both sides.

Still have bucks with antlers on my cams in Northern IN

Lets see, thats 7 times dos in Texas so iirc that would be 14 stickers, huh? Nice. Real nice. Id put out alfalfa for that boy chasing does. He needs more than pine needles to pass on those genes.

You know what they say: Give Back.

Heck the rut is just starting where I hunt in Alabama.

In the SW, late March into April seems to be shedding time for deer and elk. Some do seem to drop early. Have been told that is due to T3 level.

A few years ago saw a really big buck running a field with a couple of doe here in PA at the end of March.

Just the opposite with our mule deer. Big old robust bucks drop in Feb and the wimpy little guys might hang onto theirs into April

Had a group of four 4by's just behind the house this morning. Cookie ran out to get a couple images of the largest. Did not get close enough for a portrait, but did hit the shutter a couple times. Not one we had seen around here before. Other three have been regulars, and I can still see them bedded out the back door. A bit nippy out, and they all savoring some sunshine in a spot out of the wind.



Have seen elk here still carrying in early May, and some images from Wy feed grounds with both hard and branch velvets in the same frame.

I have to agree with 1minute. Our larger antlers fall first no matter elk mule deer or whitetail. Maybe regionally it’s different. Interesting anyways. Also I have seen no correlation to health either. Seems mass alone is the biggest factor. I swear our heathy young spike elk don’t shed until the new antler pops the old one off from below. They hold into June often and are healthy as any.

I've heard that during tough winters bucks tend to drop earlier too.

Here in Montana, I have seen a few Whitetails that have started to drop antlers. For the most part, February and March the bucks drop their antlers. The fact that a buck made it through the season in Michigan is impressive!

I found a shed of a nice buck about 3.5 years old in Northern Missouri the day after Christmas. Lots of other bucks holding horns it seemed.

Interesting responses, it surely varies due to latitude.
This is an interesting subject, thanks for responding.

We start shed hunting usually the second week of Febuary! The bucks that come to our place have their antlers, with the exception of a small three point. He only has the drivers side.