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Alabama Rut

15K views 7 replies 7 participants last post by  joel the signman 
#1 ·
wHY DOES THE RUT START SO LATE DOWN HERE COMPARED TO THE REST OF THE COUNTRY?
 
#2 ·
I think it has something to do with the climate/weather. Like it takes awhile to cool down a little bit more down there but when it starts cooling here it's Novemberish. A post by Buckfever states that the rut in Tennessee starts around late December there. You may be looking at early January or something right?
 
#4 ·
how much does an out of state Alabama license cost:whistling:
 
#5 ·
Latitude and the Rut

The change of the angle at which sunlight enters the deer's eyes is what triggers antler developement and the rut. It has to do with stimulating hormone release. At the higher latitudes (up north) the angle gets lower earlier in the year, so everything up that way happens sooner. Occasionally, you'll hear guys say that the first snow triggers the rut, but if that were the case, I guess there wouldn't be any deer in Alabama. A good scientific explanation can be found in chapter 11 of Richard Goss's book, Deer Antlers, Regeneration, Function and Evolution.
 
#7 ·
Im not buying the Latitude idea. I live in Florida and although we dont have the numbers nor the size of deer that you guys do they are fun to hunt none the less. Our rut here in the central part of the state starts about the third week of October and runs through the end of the month. It makes for a very interesting Muzzleloading season. I have a lease in Midway Alabama that borders the ENON Plantation. We have a neighbor to the south with a 1200 acre high fence area. Last March the University came in and Killed 10 does for research. After back dating the embryos they determined that all 10 had been bred between the 4th and the 15th of January. We did not even go to camp until the 17th because we thought the rut usually started the last two weeks of January. Needless to say we missed it and did not even know it. We have been trying to predict the rut in alabama for years and we hit it abaout half the time. What we are trying this year to hit the alabama rut is to have someone at camp all month in January. We take 5 day shifts and we all help keep track of whats going on in the woods. My dad and i just got back from our tour and they are starting to chase already. Nothing serious but they are getting antsy but are still nocturnal. We are packed and ready to head out any day that the other guys at camp send the word that its time!!!!
 
#8 ·
check out charles alishemers rut preditions.you can find them in deer and deer hunting magazine .The deer below the 35th parallel go into rut at a different time then those north of this.Fact
 
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