What can a rub tell you?
10-07-2007, 05:26 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Indiana PA USA
Posts: 3,656
What can a rub tell you?
Well guys, today I spent a few hours in my honey hole property doing a little scouting. Since I am tagged out, these woods will only get hunted on Saturdays from here out when I take my fiancé out. While scouting I was looking at some nice rub lines. I found a very heavy trail leading in from a cornfield in an area that I didn't hunt this season, the whole trail was lined with rubs and there was a nice scrape in the middle of it which now has my Cuddeback set-up over.
While looking I came upon a rub that impressed me, it was on a tree that was about three inches across but the height of the rub was what got me. From the top of the rub to the ground was 48-1/2" This wasa good bit higher than any of the other rubs that I had seen and I seem to remember hearing that a rub with a height of 45" or more was made from a "mature" buck. I was wondering if there was any merit in this or if there are just too many variables to actually tell if this rub was made by a mature buck.
While looking I came upon a rub that impressed me, it was on a tree that was about three inches across but the height of the rub was what got me. From the top of the rub to the ground was 48-1/2" This wasa good bit higher than any of the other rubs that I had seen and I seem to remember hearing that a rub with a height of 45" or more was made from a "mature" buck. I was wondering if there was any merit in this or if there are just too many variables to actually tell if this rub was made by a mature buck.
10-07-2007, 05:50 PM
#2
Typical Buck
Join Date: May 2007
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 957
RE: What can a rub tell you?
It tells you that a buck has "rubbed" his antlers on that tree!! LoL
From my personal experiences and trail cam pics over the years here are my conclusions:
Trying to judge a buck's rack size by the dia. of the tree is useless! I've seen big deer rub small trees and small deer rub big trees.
If you have a nice size rub look at the center of it. Check for deep gashes that are made by their brow tines. I like to check the back side of the tree to see if it looks like its been gashed up. If so, then its usually a "tight" rack.
If you have a cluster of bushes that are torn up all together then you might be dealing with a "wider" rack.
Here is what I like to find.
When I find an area that has samplings the size of golf balls and such torn intwo and bushes ripped out of the ground, then you can almost bet that theres a mature buck in the area.
From my personal experiences and trail cam pics over the years here are my conclusions:
Trying to judge a buck's rack size by the dia. of the tree is useless! I've seen big deer rub small trees and small deer rub big trees.
If you have a nice size rub look at the center of it. Check for deep gashes that are made by their brow tines. I like to check the back side of the tree to see if it looks like its been gashed up. If so, then its usually a "tight" rack.
If you have a cluster of bushes that are torn up all together then you might be dealing with a "wider" rack.
Here is what I like to find.
When I find an area that has samplings the size of golf balls and such torn intwo and bushes ripped out of the ground, then you can almost bet that theres a mature buck in the area.
10-07-2007, 06:03 PM
#6
Typical Buck
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: RAYVILLE,LA.
Posts: 818
RE: What can a rub tell you?
Rubs tell you a buck has been through an area,now if you find a line of rubs that have been freshened up then this tells you that this is a travel route for a buck and you should try to set up near it.
10-07-2007, 07:12 PM
#7
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Indiana PA USA
Posts: 3,656
RE: What can a rub tell you?
I know guys, I am not talking about the size of the tree the rub was made on, I am talking about the height of the tree where the rub is. I have seen large bucks tear small trees up and I saw a 60" buck rub the heck out of a tree 5 inches across.
What I am asking is...... Does the height of a rub on a tree help determine the BODY size of the buck that made it. It would seem to me that a buck that makes rubs that average 36" up the tree would be smaller in body size than a buck that is making rubs that reach 48-1/2"s up on a tree.
Jeff, for most places I would agree, but the deer in this property are constantly interacting with humans on a daily basis and have adapted to it. I stayed entirely out of the bedding area while also staying down wind of this area (not to mention the scent pervention precautions). I ran game cameras through this area throughout all of archery season last year and checked them every other day without having any ill effects, the big bucks still stayed in the area and still moved around during the day.
What I am asking is...... Does the height of a rub on a tree help determine the BODY size of the buck that made it. It would seem to me that a buck that makes rubs that average 36" up the tree would be smaller in body size than a buck that is making rubs that reach 48-1/2"s up on a tree.
If I see it during deer season.....and I'm not hunting......it tells me I'm somewhere I shouldn't be!
(j/k.......kinda
)
(j/k.......kinda
)
10-07-2007, 07:37 PM
#9
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Dallas TX
Posts: 442
RE: What can a rub tell you?
ORIGINAL: Rob/PA Bowyer
A rub can tell you that a buck was once there.
If it's a very, very large tree, it MIGHT be a large buck but not necessarily.
edit: LOL same time Strut...
A rub can tell you that a buck was once there.
If it's a very, very large tree, it MIGHT be a large buck but not necessarily.
edit: LOL same time Strut...
