ok, here's a situation y'all can all ponder over.
Property sits very close to one of the "dividing lines" on the Alabama Rut Map. Not high deer density and I believe a better than 1:3 buck to doe ratio. Habitat is good and improving each year and I believe we could sustain much higher deer numbers. Matt has seen my place so hopefully he'll chime in as well. Here's the issue, the breeding bell curve goes on for way too long. But I believe the does are being bred their first cycle. First does are bred right at Christmas. We see it happen while hunting and on cameras at night. Any "hot" doe I see has multiple bucks around her, never just one. Then, when you think it should all be over leading into MLK weekend and the week of Jan 20's, there are still bucks locking down on does. Watched a 3 yr old tend a doe in a privet thicket beside camphouse yard all afternoon Jan 23 and he had his hands full running off 2 younger bucks. Then on the 26th, 3/4 mile away I saw 8 different bucks on another doe. Poor thing was scared to come out of a brushtop. The oldest buck just stood there like a statue and stared at her for a couple of hours and would only move if one of the younger bucks tried to get between him and the doe.
These bucks keep going for 4-5 weeks and it wears them down. Am I just stuck with 2 different genetic peak breeding dates or could we narrow the breeding window? Fire away with knowledge.