Penn State Deer-Forest Study

Sorry for the delay in updating buck movements on our study areas. A key member of our team who has been maintaining our database since the beginning of the project has been birding in South America. And I have been chasing ruffed grouse with my two English setters. Our plan is to have more regular updates here on out.

Be sure to click “refresh” in your browser to make sure your browser views the latest update (or clear it’s cache).

Anyway, some interesting changes in movement behavior as the rut is less than two weeks away from its peak!

First, bucks are, on average, slightly below normal. But that’s because only two males are making daily movements of 3-4 miles – the remainder are below average. Compare the individual distances in the graph below to the average distance posted on the Rut Tracker.

The variation we are seeing in these males reinforces the paradox of the rut. That is, by November 13^th half the females in Pennsylvania become pregnant, which happens EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Yet, at the same time, the rut behavior you observe in the field is DIFFERENT every single year.

That means that what you see in the area you are hunting is likely not true everywhere. Variety is the spice of life and white-tailed deer show lots of spice this time of year.

-Duane Diefenbach

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18 comments on “The Rut Tracker is Updated!”

Keep me updated

Not sure if you ever wrote about this but, is there a difference between age of bucks vs distance traveled during the rut?

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 4, 2025 at 7:25 pm

Please see my response to John Minich.

2025 movement looks low across the board so far…
Maybe they have enough food where they are, no need to move much.
Wonder about daytime deer movement.

Speaking of grouse, I saw a northern goshawk from my stand today. He was no doubt looking for a grouse to nibble on….

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 4, 2025 at 7:23 pm

I’m sure it was. I remember many years ago sitting in a tree stand and watching an accipiter shoot through the incredibly thick stems of a regenerating clearcut to go after some songbirds. It missed but it was amazing to see it maneuver through the saplings at full velocity!

A buddy and I hunt a private piece of land that’s a tad over 1000 acres.

Every year like clock work the bucks start wandering now [November 3-8.}

Then BAM! The heat is really turned on November 1-18.

After that it’s over until about December 3-8 their at it again.

Thank you for the info.

Perhaps this has covered before, but does deer density have any bearing upon the distance traveled by a buck per day?

I would imagine that a buck who lives where there are fewer does would need to travel further in his quest to find a receptive doe.

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 4, 2025 at 2:48 pm

The density of adult males influences dispersal of yearling (1.5 yr old males) just prior to the rut as they seek areas with less competition. Buck movements are likely less when there are more females available, but I am not aware of any published papers on that topic (but I may be wrong!).
- William Burkert says:
  
  November 4, 2025 at 9:08 pm
  
  Thanks for your response. I enjoy the information and the exploits of your trapping crews in the winter.

Thanks, Duane! When you have a chance could you provide the ages of the 7 bucks and their “color codes”.

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 4, 2025 at 2:45 pm

Unfortunately, all I can tell you is that they are all at least 2.5 years old. We do not age captured deer (except fawn vs adult) because we want to process and release them as quickly as possible. We can visually identify fawns based on size and front incisors but adult deer you need to pry open their mouth and use the tooth replacement and wear approach, which is time consuming and only differentiates between 1.5 and 2.5+ with any accuracy. More accurate age estimates require removing an incisor and we cannot justify that intrusive action given the objectives of the study.

Have you looked at the southern study areas in comparison with the northern study areas? From reports I’ve seen there is a bumper acorn crop in the south. With lack of mast in the northern areas, one would assume those deer need to move more?

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 5, 2025 at 12:34 pm

We can look at that. But it doesn’t explain that all the does have lower movement rates. Stay tuned!

I harvested a button buck in the Senior rifle season, this deer had 3/4 inch spikes in velvet. Is this unusual? If so what would cause it?

Jeannine Fleegle says:

November 5, 2025 at 7:24 pm

Not unusual at all. In fact, button bucks can have polished buttons! If they are polished, then they are sexually mature and can breed. They will shed them like any antlered buck. You are an exceptional shed hunter (or exceptionally lucky 😉 if you can find those coin-sized antlers in the woods. If the buttons are still fur covered, they are retained and the first set of antlers will start to grow from that spot. Perhaps if he lived, he might have polished those button up and been ready for the rut!

Not sure if this is the correct place to post, but I have always wondered about doe and fawn activity during the rut. My spots always seem like daycare centers with fawns staying and the doe leaving during rut. Any studies or data on how far doe will go from their fawns during rut, how long are they gone, do doencheck back in on the fawns daily. Any info would be appreciated.

Duane Diefenbach says:

November 12, 2025 at 7:32 pm

We do not have data on fawn movements so I cannot say yea or nay. However, this time of year females should be traveling in loose familial “groups” so I don’t know why fawns would be separated from adult does.

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