James Mott witnesses an unusually late start to the 2015 Roe rut.
It was with some relief when on Saturday 1st August the first Roe Buck of the year came bounding in to the call.
In Hampshire the Rut has in previous years started somewhat earlier with Bucks usually responding to the call and showing signs of rutting activity as early as the 23rd July. This year however late July brought with it driving rain and unseasonably cold winds.
That is not to say that at County Deer Stalking we were not seeing Bucks, we were, and managed to secure some good representative heads despite the conditions. It was simply that none of these bucks were showing any interest in responding to the Buttalo.
(Left: A delighted client Jacob gets to witness the start of the Roe rut)
Peter my colleague saw some early interest from Does, but despite this, witnessed no rutting behaviour.
And so it was that on Saturday to the delight of my client Jacob the first young buck of the year behaved according to form and responded beautifully, coming charging in to just 15 yards, before an initially awe struck Jacob managed to dispatch him with the Estate rifle.
The Roe rut is often short and sweet and so if you have been experiencing a slow start to this year activity, with a warm week forecast, my advice would be set out as soon as possible. Often the peak of the activity only lasts around a week or so before tailing off.
Best of luck!
To read more about Roe Buck Stalking follow this link: roe-buck-stalking
