The Whitetail Rut
Understand the biology of the rut, plus get predictions for the season.
When Does the Rut Start?
The rut starts when does enter estrus. And when is that? We know a whitetail deer’s gestation period is about 200 days. Talk to your local wildlife specialist and find out when most fawns are dropping in the spring, then count backward from there to know when does are bred in your area.
According to the Mississippi State University Deer Ecology and Management Lab, “The window of time in which hunters might observe an individual doe in ‘estrus’ or in ‘heat,’ from start to finish, can range from 24 to 48 hours. While that sounds like a tight window, not all does enter estrus at the same time. The timing is staggered slightly across the population, and the cumulative effect gives us the rut.
Rut Phases
The deer rut lasts about a month and happens in phases. Does have a 28-day estrous cycle. Higher doe numbers can yield a longer rut period. Also, the farther south you go, the longer the rut can last, due to the warmer climate. In Mississippi, for example, the deer rut can range from early December to early February.
In general, phases of the rut include:
Pre-Rut
General Timing: Last Week of October
The start of the rut is not something you can easily put your finger on, but you know it when you see it. Young bucks are often cruising, does are more on edge, and mature bucks start to move in daylight.
Scrapes are hit often. Don’t hesitate to hunt them or hang cameras on them. Bucks travel outside their home range, so any chance to get photos of different bucks is a win, not only for this year but for obtaining data for years to come.
Your grunt tube and rattling antlers quickly become relevant tools: Start making noise in the woods. During this window, you’re often still experiencing calm mornings and evenings, so sound travels well. Use soft and slow calls and focus on deer you can see. Also, think food: Where you find does, you will find what you are looking for.
Early Rut
General Timing: Early November
The first does are entering estrus. Get situated early—well before shooting time—and sit all day if you can. If you’re sitting on an edge or food source and it slows dramatically, think about sneaking into or hanging a tree stand on the downwind side of a doe bedding area. Now is the time to get aggressive; a common mistake hunters make this time of year is being too cautious.
Scrapes are still active, and it’s worth staying on the grunt tube and antlers, or even a doe bleat, but don’t call too much, especially on public land. If relevant, check cameras on each walk in or out, as this intel is extremely valuable right now. Bucks are traveling further during this timeframe than at any other time of year. A Penn State study found bucks expanded their home range by three times on average—you never know who might show up.
Peak Rut
General Timing: Second Week of November
Midday movement begins to increase, especially among mature bucks. Get to your favorite tree stand, bring extra layers and snacks, and sit all day.
Hunt based on the data your trail cameras have produced in the last week. Pinch points, fence lines, field edges, and other funneling spots are great places to intercept cruising bucks.
Late Rut
General Timing: Mid-November
Mid-November includes the true rut “lockdown,” when bucks have found willing does in estrus to breed. Does tend to bed down when ready to breed, often in obscure locations. Bucks will sit on or tend a doe for hours until the time has come to breed. You might see “orphaned” fawns wandering around with no mature doe, which can signify the doe is being tended by a buck and is in lockdown. Movement is often sporadic, and you never know when the light switch can flip back on. Stay at it; good things will happen.
Consider hunting a water source if you can; mature bucks that have been frantically seeking does will need to find water. A shift in focus to midday also becomes a great strategy; 9 AM to 4 PM is a great time to be in tree stands. Get back into those bedding areas; get in quiet and make sure the wind is right, as these areas will be scent-checked by mature bucks. You might even consider spot and stalk around mid-November.
Post-Rut
General Timing: Late November
Late November hunts can be long, cold, and downright tough. But bucks will still be in search of the last estrus does. Though, we’re on the backside of the bell curve, and movement tapers quickly. Morning to midday can be productive, as can sitting downwind of doe bedding areas.
Look back into your trail camera archives and see where you had pictures of bucks last year at this time, then compare what you’ve gathered the last couple of weeks. Deer are creatures of habit and will likely be on a similar pattern as in years past, so use this data to your advantage.
2025 Outlook for Whitetail Hunting
The 2024-25 winter was warmer than average, especially in the southern tier of the US, the eastern Great Lakes, the eastern seaboard, and New England (Exceptions? Pockets of the Midwest were hit by cold air bursts). This follows the 2023-24 winter, which was the warmest on record in the contiguous United States.
Milder winters generally mean better survival rates and healthier pregnancies. More deer means better odds. According to the National Deer Association’s 2025 Deer Report, the antlered buck harvest just eclipsed three million in a season—only the second time that’s happened in the 21st century.
Better yet, yearling buck harvests were down, and 43% of all bucks harvested were 3 ½ years old or older, the highest ever recorded (stats based on the 2023-24 season). A couple of southern states stood out with good news: Louisiana had a 31% increase in antlered buck harvests over its five-year average, and South Carolina boasted a whopping 73 antlered buck harvests per 100 hunters.
According to the same report, more positive news was reinforced in the 2024-25 season, with Maryland hunters harvesting 24% more deer than the prior year in the early archery and muzzleloader seasons and Ohio hunters checking in the most deer since 2011.
Lunar News
In 2025, we will see a full moon on November 5. If you’re in the camp that swears by lunar phases, a full moon could mean more deer moving at night since it’s brighter. However, hunters aren’t hunting at night, so what it really means is that deer could shift their daylight activity and feeding patterns a bit for a day or two following the full moon.
Deer movement and feeding patterns might shift to later in the day if they had been more active and feeding under the bright night sky. Translation: If you can, stay out longer on November 6 and 7.
Deer Movement Forecast
Powered by real-time data leveraging 50+ parameters related to deer behavior, Deer Movement Forecast predicts the odds of increased deer activity on your hunt.
Best Days To Hunt the 2025 Rut
There are always factors that will have some impact on peak rut days, such as temperature, barometric pressure changes, hunting pressure, and general nutrition of the herd, but since the shortening of days (i.e. photoperiod) is the primary influencer for the peak of the deer rut, you won’t find a wide variance year-over-year for when things get going.
In fact, here are some of the days we’ve found to be consistently productive, year-over-year:
- November 4 (± 1 day) – Not only is this within a day of this year’s November full moon, it’s favored by many Ambassadors who like the late October to early November rut window. Heartland Bowhunter’s Michael Hunsucker told us back in 2021 that November 7 “has been one of the best days of the year for me, having harvested several mature bucks over the years on that date. During the time, bucks are typically cruising hard, seeking those first few does that have come into heat and throwing caution to the wind as their rut-crazed minds wander the woods.”
- November 13 – This has been frequently cited as the scientific median breeding day for most of the country. This is empirical data from monitoring fawn drop dates.
- November 16 (± 2 days) – Many of our Ambassadors like this mid-November period because it often falls after the peak “rut frenzy.” Raised Hunting’s David Holder says, “As the frenzy starts to wind down, the bigger bucks will get back to some consistency. This is also a great time to see a buck you’ve never seen show up as he starts traveling further distances, hoping to find one of the last few does still in heat.”
How Buck Behavior Changes During the Rut, And What It Means for You
Rut Behavior Change #1: Mobility
During the rut, bucks drop their guard and are more apt to show themselves during daylight. As their instinct to breed takes over, bucks will search miles and miles for does in heat. This makes them a more mobile animal overall. Big bucks, ones that you never saw beforehand, will come out of the woodwork.
- What It Means for You: The routine of hunting in the morning and evening flies out the window. Morning and evening are still good hunting times, but with increased deer movement from rut activity, bucks can be spotted any time of the day. This means more time in the tree is time well spent. Put yourself between two doe bedding areas and see what happens: Bucks will act like pinballs between the two.
Rut Behavior Change #2: Aggression
Aggression runs thick during the deer rut, from bucks fighting to defend territory and breeding rights, to breeding itself.
- What It Means for You: Rattling, calling, and decoys can all be used effectively during the rut. Motivated bucks will come running to the sounds of antlers crashing together because bucks are often fighting over breeding rights. Grunting can attract bucks passing by, while decoys can either mimic does or bucks, drawing a curious buck into range.
Rut Behavior Change #3: Tunnel Vision
During the rut, bucks frequently appear completely oblivious to their surroundings. A time when this is especially true is when a hot doe is in front of him. Sometimes bucks will stand motionless in the same spot just staring at a doe.
- What It Means for You: If a buck’s full attention is focused on does, that means he’s not paying attention to you. There’s more room for error, and you might be able to get away with things you can’t during other parts of the season.
Hot Spots for Hunting the Rut
Every hunter has their favorite method, stand, or spot to hunt the deer rut. A few Ambassadors were kind enough to share their favorite features to hunt when the heat is on in the fall.
“A pinch near doe bedding. I do my best to pay attention to what the does are doing leading up to the rut. Or, if I don’t get to scout ahead of time, any doe sightings are marked on the map as I hunt.
One spot I have had really good luck in the past is a south-facing slope with thick cover. I always see does filter in and out of it to go to and from the ag fields to either side. There is a pinch where the hill is super steep up top on the north side and it slopes down to a trail that runs west-east then turns up almost north-south along the side of it. At the bottom, there is a creek ditch. There is a scrape right on that corner and with any kind of south or west wind, it’s dynamite. Bucks are constantly going along that trail to check for bedded does, but because they are forced to that pinch of a trail, any shooter buck will most likely stop on that scrape for a shot.” – Kaitlyn Maus, Kaitlyn Maus Outdoors
HuntWorx’s Setup
“I prefer to be downwind of a couple bedding areas that we have created that are next to an hourglass food plot [as shown]. This creates early deer movement to our food sources because they are so close to the bedding thickets.
As the deer come out to the hourglass layout, the layout encourages the deer movement through our bottleneck with two different food sources on each side of the hourglass.
The fact deer are grazers, they move through the bottleneck to graze on another food source and to check for other deer. We just happen to be set up in the bottleneck that is 32 yards wide.” – Greg Glesinger, HuntWorx
Raised Hunting’s Setup
“My favorite spot to hunt during the rut is just off of a food plot or a well-used agriculture field. Sitting 80 to 100 yards off of a food source might mean I see fewer deer than sitting on a food source, but I’ve found that I see better and bigger deer. Seems like small bucks and does have no issues walking out into the open fields long before dark, but getting the big boys to do the same seems much less frequent. So several years ago I started sitting off the food plots where big bucks might feel comfortable staging at before the cover of nightfall lures them into the open.
This tactic has paid off more than once for me and I found a hidden bonus as well. By not sitting on the food source I don’t have to contend with trying to get out of my stand with several deer in close proximity. Instead, I let the deer work their way past me and into the feeding area, if the right deer doesn’t show up, I simply slip down and sneak out, leaving a location I can come back to and hunt again. Maybe the best thing about these particular stand locations is I have found them highly productive both morning and evenings, making these locations some of my first choices during the rut.” – David Holder, Raised Hunting
“If I had to pick one spot to sit every day during the rut, I would choose a pinch in between doe bedding areas. With little terrain change where I’m at, emphasis gets put on any notable feature that would pinch deer movement down.
In this case, it’s a fence crossing that’s on the south side of a bedding area along the creek. With access from the west on a mowed trail, and positioning my stand to the west of this movement, I can thread the needle scent profile-wise on days where northerly winds grace the woods. This sets up a great pattern of movement I’ve observed for bucks looking for their next doe.
Bucks work from south to north, eventually pinching down at the fence crossing, coming by within 15 yards. By identifying this feature that pinches down deer movement, I’m able to enter and exit without ever crossing into a sensitive area, like the doe bedding, all while sitting in wait where they will cross.
Keeping this pattern of movement in mind, I would do my best to locate a similar feature to the fence crossing that worked well for varying winds to keep me in the game on this property more throughout the rut.” – Josh Sparks, Midwest Whitetail
Make the Most of the Rut With onX Hunt
onX Hunt is made for hunters, by hunters, so when it comes to having an edge in the field for pursuing bucks chasing does the Hunt App is as vital as the stand you sit in or the food plot you’re set up over.
Optimal Wind
Set your ideal wind direction for any location. Choosing which stand to hunt is as simple as opening the Hunt App and looking for green.
“I play the wind every sit. I can look at the map and see the 4-6 locations that will work best for the wind that morning or evening. – Sam Soholt, onX Hunt Ambassador
Deer Movement Forecast
onX Hunt’s Deer Movement Forecast helps you make the most of every sit this season.
By analyzing dozens of parameters, including factors like wind, weather, and observational data from aggregated movement insights, we give you the best times to hunt.
Lidar
Lidar gives you topographic detail down to three meters, allowing you to see terrain nuance like never before.
Discover small benches, rocky outcroppings, and old road beds to help you find the next best tree for a stand.
Rut Myths Debunked
Busting a few of the most common “Rut Myths” our Ambassadors have heard.
The rut will save you from poor effort.
Pressured deer don’t lose their minds during the rut the way we think they do. You still have to put in the effort to scout, play the wind, and get in and out with minimal impact. You still have to work the deer like it’s not the rut. -Tony Peterson
It’s too hot—the deer are only rutting at night.
Heat will certainly slow the amount of daylight activity you see, but I have killed deer in mid-November when it was a low of 50-60 at night, and highs in the 70s. You may need to be closer to bedding areas, and the normal plan of sitting a travel route won’t work, but deer are still acting like deer somewhere. Get closer to wherever that is. You might bump deer, but I’d rather bump a deer and have a chance than spend a week watching the leaves blow around. -Sam Soholt
It’s going to be constant action.
Sometimes the rut is the most difficult time of year for seeing deer. -Clay Newcomb
Scrapes start to ‘dry up’ during the rut.
Over the years of running more trail cameras than I care to admit, the scrape activity of mature bucks stays strong throughout the rut. Although there are short periods of decreased activity, I’ve seen some of the biggest bucks I’ve had the privilege to hunt hitting scrapes November 9th-12th. -Jake Hofer
The rut is too chaotic for those targeting a specific buck, with bed-to-food patterns behind us.
If you’ve created dense cover, you can condense and hold doe groups in your target buck’s core area. During the pre-rut, that buck has one thing on his mind: find a receptive doe. He will search dense cover pockets to find her, and will walk with the wind in his face or a cutting wind. Play the wind and put yourself in close proximity to or in between the pockets of cover where the does are. -Matt Dye
You’re out of cards when a buck goes into lockdown.
It’s still within reason to find a way to kill that buck. Every property is different but here’s two examples of how to adjust:
1. Get near a food source where the does are feeding. That locked down buck will follow the doe and feed near her. If you’re close enough, you’ll have a shot.
2. Sometimes, the locked down buck will take a doe into the thickest, most remote part of the property. Study your properties on onX and with boots on the ground in the offseason and get on the edge of where they may be. –Jeff Althoff
