Post Rut Bulls and their behavior

[Browtine908]

Hello All,

"FNG" here wanted to kick off my first posting with my personal favorite style of elk hunting.... and that is rifle hunting post rut bulls. I know... crazy.

Question/ prompt to you all = When a mature breeding bull has wrapped up breeding season, they "typically" seek seclusion and start trying to rebound. What is your thoughts and findings for what they do from there? Do they travel far and seek out high nutritional feeds? Do they just find the nearest secluded place and hide out? Will they shadow cow herds? Drop elevation? Gain Elevation?

1... 2... 3... go!

 

[Hnthrdr]

If it’s your favorite thing to you I’d love to hear what you think? I mostly hunt bulls with a bow, so I don’t concern myself with what they do after very often, my guess is it depends weather, but I think a lot of them stay up high in super nasty drainages that have maybe a seep and decent feed and chill there till they are pressured by man, predator, or weather

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

Depends on the bill, if ur an FNG here’s the best info I can give you to go by with public land otc elk…. Elk do what they do, when they want, where they want, however they want and there’s not 100% rhyme or reason as to why they did it that day. Post rut bulls do whatever they want, it also depends on the cows going into the last estrus cycle if they haven’t been bred…. Yes there’s 4 estrus cycle periods they go through.


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[Browtine908]

If it’s your favorite thing to you I’d love to hear what you think? I mostly hunt bulls with a bow, so I don’t concern myself with what they do after very often, my guess is it depends weather, but I think a lot of them stay up high in super nasty drainages that have maybe a seep and decent feed and chill there till they are pressured by man, predator, or weather

My experience has been that I seem to find them not far from where they were rutting. As if the switch went off, or the estrus dried up, and they hit the first place they felt security and camped out.

I've seen/ heard others' experience that they traveled back to summer grounds or close to. But that hasn't produced for me. I've helped on many earley archery hunts and found where the mature bulls summer before taking off for the rut. I've had zero luck finding them back in those areas however. Talking anywhere from the typical 10/15 period through first week of November.

 

[Hnthrdr]

My experience has been that I seem to find them not far from where they were rutting. As if the switch went off, or the estrus dried up, and they hit the first place they felt security and camped out.

I've seen/ heard others' experience that they traveled back to summer grounds or close to. But that hasn't produced for me. I've helped on many earley archery hunts and found where the mature bulls summer before taking off for the rut. I've had zero luck finding them back in those areas however. Talking anywhere from the typical 10/15 period through first week of November.

Seems like you have a good handle on it. I’m helping friends on an elk rifle hunt in November so it will be interesting to see if they are near where they summer, rut, or somewhere totally different

 

[Browtine908]

Depends on the bill, if ur an FNG here’s the best info I can give you to go by with public land otc elk…. Elk do what they do, when they want, where they want, however they want and there’s not 100% rhyme or reason as to why they did it that day. Post rut bulls do whatever they want, it also depends on the cows going into the last estrus cycle if they haven’t been bred…. Yes there’s 4 estrus cycle periods they go through.


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They definitely do what they want... I'll add that they also go wherever they want! Ha.

Curious on your comment about 4 estrus periods. I've heard from more than 1 biologist that cows only cycle once. But the timing is dependent on their body conditioning go into fall daylight timing. What has led you to believe there is 4 cycle periods?

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

They definitely do what they want... I'll add that they also go wherever they want! Ha.

Curious on your comment about 4 estrus periods. I've heard from more than 1 biologist that cows only cycle once. But the timing is dependent on their body conditioning go into fall daylight timing. What has led you to believe there is 4 cycle periods?

Cows cycle up to 4 times until they are bred. They are in estrus for only 24 hours each cycle. If they don’t get bred it’s usually around 20 days til they come back into estrus again.

You can search it on google, Paul with elknut confirms it, I’ve been guiding for 20+ years and have seen it first hand.


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[Browtine908]

Seems like you have a good handle on it. I’m helping friends on an elk rifle hunt in November so it will be interesting to see if they are near where they summer, rut, or somewhere totally different

I'm assuming that will be in our around the rockies. Early winter weather plays a factor into it as well. It takes tons of snow to move a bull some times. But if they need feed they'll bounce just the same. Good luck! First week of November is my favorite.

 

[Hnthrdr]

I'm assuming that will be in our around the rockies. Early winter weather plays a factor into it as well. It takes tons of snow to move a bull some times. But if they need feed they'll bounce just the same. Good luck! First week of November is my favorite.

Yep down in the Rockies in Co, I have a mule deer tag, but I’m most likely helping a friend get a bull before I go chase deer. Mid Nov. it will be a lot of fun, lots of time behind glass picking apart country, very different from archery hunting them but it has its place

 

[Browtine908]

Cows cycle up to 4 times until they are bred. They are in estrus for only 24 hours each cycle. If they don’t get bred it’s usually around 20 days til they come back into estrus again.

You can search it on google, Paul with elknut confirms it, I’ve been guiding for 20+ years and have seen it first hand.


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Sweet! Paul Medel is a wizard. Haven't caught that podcast or article but I'll look for it!

 

[2five7]

It's easy to figure out...

Some Bulls go far away, some don't go far at all, some head down to lower country, some head for the highest hills, and others even hang out with the cows and spikes.

See, super simple!

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

Sweet! Paul Medel is a wizard. Haven't caught that podcast or article but I'll look for it!

In his book, I seen him comment about it a few times on rokslide, I spent 2 full hunting seasons dogging herds, I seen 1 old old cow get covered by bulls 4 times over those 2 months, she never took but was almost 20 days exactly between cycles.


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[tuffcrk14]

I’ve heard guys have had success harvesting post rut bulls where they found elk sheds from the spring before. I can’t confirm this from personal experience, but it makes sense. If I knew where the bulls I hunt shed their antlers, I’d definitely have it on my shortlist of places to check for activity.


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[KsRancher]

Would 1st season be considered post rut? Or is it still rut, bust just the tail end of it?

 

[Ross]

I’ve killed several big bulls till the end of october screaming and chasing cows…my experience says come November the big guys move off to the dark shadows and big nasty

 

[KsRancher]

I’ve killed several big bulls till the end of october screaming and chasing cows…my experience says come November the big guys move off to the dark shadows and big nasty

That's what I was thinking. I am planning on all the bulls being with the cows this weekend. My dad has a 4th season bull tag. I am pretty sure I know of a hell hole that a bull will be hanging out in

 

[Browtine908]

I’ve killed several big bulls till the end of october screaming and chasing cows…my experience says come November the big guys move off to the dark shadows and big nasty

That's awesome! It's certainly not rare to catch bulls bugling at that time. I'm curious if those experiences were in areas with healthy wolf populations. The vast majority of my OTC hunts are in areas with plenty of wolves (Idaho) and i would venture to say you're lucky if you catch them bugling much during peak rut. Areas with lack of wolves would be more "normal" with regards to elk being vocal though.

 

[Laramie]

No expert but have hunted and guided elk in 4 states over the last 34 years. The one consistent thing I have found is that old bulls have learned how to avoid people after the rut. How they accomplish that varies greatly between states/regions and habitats.

 

[Ross]

@Browtine908 since the wolves became a problem much less bugling than prior to their to their existence late but still finding bulls bugling well into October. If enough cows not bred early the later estrus can provide some short bugling opps

 

[Wrench]

I’ve killed several big bulls till the end of october screaming and chasing cows…my experience says come November the big guys move off to the dark shadows and big nasty

October 27th a few years ago I had a bull absolutely stupid with puddy on his mind.