Northwest Rut Report, Week 4: Blacktails and Muleys Begin Pre-Rut, but Whitetails Missed the Memo

Hunters across the Northwest are spoiled with big game options. Every season, most hunters have the opportunity to hold tags for multiple big game species like elk, bear, antelope, and deer. While the Northwestern states host up to three species of deer – muleys, whitetails, and blacktails – state regulations don’t give out a tag per deer species. In the vast majority of the Northwest, hunters can shoot one buck per year. The exceptions are typically areas with a heavy concentration of CWD where wildlife management agencies are trying to lower populations.

With a single buck tag in your pocket, or perhaps on your phone as many states have moved to e-tags, how do hunters choose what species to pursue? Sometimes hunters will apply for a certain species depending on where or what they want to hunt. Perhaps, it’s a special tag for a certain species in a trophy unit. Sometimes general tags are limited to a specific species depending on the hunt area. And in some situations, a general tag means you can shoot any buck you see. Why does this matter for the rut report? Right now, hunters are reporting vastly different behavior among the deer species. So, if you have a tag with species options, it’s something to consider.

In Washington and Oregon, Halloween ghost decorations aren’t the only ghosts showing up. The grey ghosts, also known as blacktail deer, are popping up on trail cameras during daylight hours. Hunters are reporting a significant spike in activity like seeking and chasing. They’re also finding rubs and scrapes. This is the time of year when these generally elusive creatures start to make mistakes.

Don’t Miss: Have Your Best Rut Week Ever

In Idaho and Wyoming, the first snowfall of the season wasn’t enough to push mature mountain bucks out of higher elevations. Hunters that connected with truly big bucks this week reported finding them deep in the backcountry. A lot of the older bucks are still in bachelor groups, but that should change any day based on what’s happened in lower elevations. This week an increasing number of younger bucks moved in on herds of does and they’re not just hanging out — they’re showing interest.

This week in Big Sky Country, Montana hunters were on a five-day break between archery and general season which opens Saturday, October 26. I live in an area with healthy mule deer and whitetail populations, but this week you wouldn’t know it. I saw mule deer everywhere, at all hours of the day. I spotted numerous younger bucks mixed in with groups of does. They were seeking, chasing and the real young ones were fighting. Meanwhile, whitetails are nowhere to be found during daylight hours. Mature bucks are limiting their travel to night and primarily only moving between feeding and bedding areas. Even the younger bucks are sticking to the early season routine.

If you have the tag and opportunity to chase blacktails or mule deer this week, you’ll likely encounter bucks on the move exhibiting some classic pre-rut behaviors. While there are some reports of mature mountain muleys making mistakes, you may still have to climb some elevation to find one. Hunting whitetails is always a waiting game. If you’ve set your sights on one this week, be patient.