Southeast Rut Report, Week 10: Rut Approaching Peak in Some Areas While it Fades in Others

It’s a mixed bag of post-rut and pre-rut activity across the Southeast. Things are really heating up in Mississippi where Smalltown Hunting Properties Cody Kelly says he’s starting to see young bucks bumping does around in the food plots and mature bucks hitting scrapes on camera.

“I’m also starting to see more mature bucks daylighting on cameras in food plots,” he says. “These cooler temps seem to have them up and moving, checking food plots for does and scraping and rubbing. The next two weeks in the Mississippi Delta are going to be really good. A cold front is coming over the weekend, which should really turn things up a notch.”

Outdoor photographer Tes Jolly is spending a few days in the Smoky Mountains of east Tennessee photographing deer and says in that part of the state the December rut is approaching.

“I observed a couple of 2-year-old bucks chasing a doe relentlessly today,” Jolly says. “She wasn’t interested in the least. The deer are in great shape with the heavy mast crop available. The seeking phase appears to be on, and the action should pick up soon.”

Bert Moore says he’s seeing a lot of scrapes and rubs in McCalla, Alabama. “I’m still catching mostly nighttime deer activity on the cameras,” Moore says. “Young bucks are showing pre-rut activity, but the bigger bucks are hanging around and starting to check does. I’m headed to my land in Perry County now and will start camera surveys today.”

In eastern North Carolina, deer activity is way off from the first of the month according to Greg Batts, North Carolina District 3 wildlife biologist. “Hunters are seeing fewer deer during the day and more at night on cameras,” Batts says. “The primary rut is done for 2024, but there will be a secondary bump in activity during the first part of December. Does that missed getting bred the first time will be coming back into heat again. If you’re lucky and hunting, you might still have an opportunity at a good buck.”

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Realtree editor Will Brantley says Kentucky is trickling into the post rut. “There are still some bucks out cruising here and there, and scrapes are being hit pretty hard again. But, overall, deer movement during the day has really declined. Does and fawns are yarding up into big groups and hitting food sources. Winter wheat fields really seem to be the ticket right now, and bait piles, too, where they're legal. I'm focusing most of my hunting effort on evening sits and hoping to fill another tag or two before the season ends.”

Georgia’s deer activity has also slowed despite the cooler weather. “It seems like we are in the post-rut phase, and mature bucks aren’t moving much if at all right now,” Realtree’s Tyler Jordan says. “The few does that are in heat are locked down with bucks. They’re starting to frequent the food sources a little bit more, but there still hasn’t been a ton of mature bucks doing that as of yet.”

In the Arkansas Ozarks, rutting activity is also starting to taper off. This is corresponding with the close of modern gun season (there will be another modern gun season right after Christmas, and archery runs through February) and the arrival of colder weather.

“Weather in the Ozarks is often a roller coaster ride, but the last week or so has brought overnight temps varying back and forth from the low 50s, to the mid-teens,” outdoor photographer Glenn Wheeler says. “Daytime temps have varied from upper 30s to the 60s. While most deer hunters look forward to the temperatures, they seem to be a little bit after the rut this year. Hunters are seeing fewer bucks actively chasing does.”

The Tennessee rut is also coming to an end. Outdoor writer Gil Lackey says according to his local taxidermist, it's been a banner year.

“Trophies are still trickling in, but the action has slowed down,” Lackey says. “My trail cams have showed the doe groups seem to be back together after being separated during the flurry of rut activity. There are still some mature bucks looking for love, though, so enduring the elements could pay off handsomely.”

The intensity of the rut is subsiding in some Southeastern states and heating up in others. This split in timing highlights the diversity of the rut’s progression across the region, with each area offering unique challenges and opportunities for hunters.