HORMONAL HIGH GEAR

Each year, hundreds of articles are written explaining why bucks throw caution to the wind, expand their home ranges, rub, scrape, fight, chase and breed. Though rutting behavior is fascinating, I believe few hunters truly know what drives a buck to do what he does during the rut.

There isn’t one aspect of rut behavior that stands on its own merits. Rather, all are part of a recipe driven by environmental factors and hormones. Everything leading up