Should you hunt a buck's roost during the rut?

A heavily loaded buck is ready for the day. The wind blows from behind and the eyes search downwards, the danger has little chance of finding him before he notices it. After all, that's why the buck chose this spot in the first place.

If you scan articles about the best rut hunting spots, you won't find many that highlight buck bedding areas as important locations to target. But often, going against the grain when deer hunting can yield great results.

However, you can only hunt buck bedding areas effectively if you have a good understanding of how bucks bed, where they sleep, and how they learn to survive based on their roost choices.

If you're tired of chasing the same old rut with minimal success, consider a change. Hunting a buck roost during the rut could be your ticket to hanging an old bruiser on the wall. Here's what you need to know.

Defining Buck Bedding

Let's start by agreeing on the terms. Naturally, moorings are places where deer rest and sleep. However, it is important to know that there are different types of sleeping places. Deer have places to sleep during the day and at night. For this article we will focus on daybeds.

On the surface, it can be difficult to tell the difference between deer and fox roosts. However, there are differences.

Bucks tend to prioritize safety over convenience. Usually the opposite approach is taken. Bucks rely on themselves to detect danger (because they typically go to bed alone). However, bed, food and travel usually occur within family units. If you go to bed together, you should face the bed in different directions. This makes it easier to detect danger from all areas around them. Bucks cannot do this, so they are much more picky about their bed locations.

Furthermore, the money may or may not end up in the same coverage areas. When they do, the money tends to take the best quality bedding. In hill country, for example, this could be the upper third of a ridge. In swamps this may be the highest dry soil available. In large forests this may involve wooden interiors or areas with the thickest cover and highest number of stems.

Bucks also roost in areas that provide ample horizontal cover. They may rest against a boulder, tree trunk, or other object that hides their profile. From a hunter's perspective, you often only see their head, antlers and perhaps neck. Other times you don't see anything at all (until it's too late).

Regardless of habitat type or geographic layout, bucks almost always nest with certain consistencies. For example, they tend to go to bed with the wind at their backs. This allows them to smell everything upwind (behind them) and see everything downwind (in front).

This is one reason why leeward ridges are so attractive to deer. The prevailing wind brings scent from over the top of the ridge. Early in the day, the thermals bring up the scent from below. This often allows deer to smell danger from multiple directions.

Smart people undoubtedly learn how to detect danger in their environment. Over time, they learn typical directions where danger comes from. With that knowledge, they settle in areas that provide visibility to see hunters or predators coming from these directions. Therefore, don't be surprised if you see beds of bucks right on the edge of thick cover in some of the areas mentioned above. This gives them enough cover to hide and allows them to see danger coming from the open areas nearby.

It's logical to think that once people gain confidence in certain beds, they will continue to use the same beds over and over again. In some ways, and in many places, they do. In particular, bucks that live in more desolate landscapes or areas with poorer habitat quality are more likely to reuse the same beds.

According to the MSU Deer LabIn areas with higher timber-open ratios and larger forest habitats, bucks are less loyal to specific beds. They will still end up in the same relative geographic locations. However, the absolute locations of their beds often vary.

Read next: How to Run for Cover During the Rut, with Dr. Craig Harper

Know that old dollars are different

It has been said many times, but older money works very differently than younger money and it does. They adopt vastly different habits and tendencies.

A common thread among most adult deer is the desire for seclusion. Older bucks don't want a bunch of other deer lying close to them. Additionally, it is important to recognize that larger deer populations, and greater deer densities in general, can put bucks on the margins. This is especially true outside the routine.

Because of everything noted above, hunting close to buck bedding is challenging. It becomes even more difficult when the deer is 4.5 years or older. These deer have learned to survive in part because of their roosting choices. Therefore, it takes strategic planning and a very deliberate approach to thread the needle and raise big money.

So, should you hunt for Buck bedding during the rut?

While not as popular as other rail-centric stand locations, it is certainly an option. By continuing to focus on areas with buck beds (similar to early season and pre-rut plans), hunters can find a big old buck.

By sifting through deer research and personal experiences, it becomes clear that money expresses unique habits and tendencies that culminate in perceived personalities. An example is a really old buck that hardly participates in the rut. That is of course the exception, but it would require a unique approach. You should hunt a deer like that as if the rut isn't even on. You would focus on travel routes along bed-to-feed patterns.

Some adult bucks that participate in the rut still return to their favorite roosts. If they do not find an estrus doe under cover of darkness, they sneak cautiously back at dawn to one of the advantageous beds they know. If you hunt this type of deer, position yourself between its bed and nearby food sources. Or between his bed and the nearby doe bedding.

Hunting this deer is similar to hunting the edges of buck bedding outside the rut. Use good entry and exit strategies and consider wind direction during approach, chase and departure. Don't be aggressive with shouting, rattling, or misleading, as withdrawn bucks rarely respond well to these aggressive tactics.

Final thoughts on Buck bedding hunting grounds during the rut

Sprinkling bucks requires a lot of planning and attention. Hunting buck litter during the rut requires even more. In many cases this is not the right game.

Often it is less dominant, very mature deer (5 ½-plus), or specific bucks that tend to be more reclusive throughout their lifespan, that require this hunting tactic.

Once you determine that you are hunting a specific buck like this, you should hunt him carefully. Use the hunting strategies you would normally use to hunt a whitetail roost, keeping proximity to the rut in mind.