Buck Rubs and Scrapes – What’s the Difference?
With the deer hunting season fast approaching in many areas of the country, many deer hunters are looking for buck sign in their favorite patch of woods. Rubs happen to be one sure sign that a buck has been in the area. Doe deer don't make rubs.
Over the years it seems that rubs are one piece of buck sign that most deer hunters mis diagnose when scouting. I'm not sure why, perhaps they haven't taken the time to really educate their self on the different types of rubs. I've even heard old Grizzled deer hunters call deer scraps "rubs" and deer rubs "scrapes".
I hope to shed some light on the different types of buck rubs and the timeline you'll likely see these rubs.
Late Summer Buck Rubs
Starting in late August through September in most parts of the country, you'll start finding rubs on small bushes and saplings. In my area, the Sumac, Pine and Cedar are favored bushes that bucks rub on.
Bucks rub on these saplings at this time of the year to help remove the velvet from their antlers. In fact, it's not uncommon to find these bushes with pieces of velvet still on them.
I've never seen a buck come back to these rubs on a routine basis. For them, these are simply a tool to remove velvet. They simply tell you that a buck, or bucks, have passed by and rubbed velvet off. Nothing to see here folks, just keep moving.
Pre Rut Buck Rubs
I was once told by an Old Timer that bucks rub on trees to mark their paths. Ummm....okay. I have a small problem with that theory. Bucks live in their little patch of woods year round, why do they need trail markers just for the fall? How would they find their trail at other times of the year? I've never bout that piece of advice personally.
The type of rubs I find during the hunting season leading up to the rut are what I call the Pre Rut Buck Rubs. These are rubs bucks make going to and from bedding and feeding areas. You'll likely find many along deer trails.
Look for trees in your area that are very fragrant when the bark is peeled back. Sumac (called Shoe-Makes in my neck of the woods), Cedar and Pine are all favorites of bucks around here. Bucks love to rub trees like these. My theory of why bucks prefer these trees is that it's possible the thick sap holds scent from their glands for a longer period of time. I believe these rubs are bucks letting other bucks know they're in the area. Marking their territory so to speak. Kinda like your dog walking the perimeter of your yard and peeing on ever little bush it comes to.
It's been my experience that bucks will make clusters of these rubs near their bedding area. Once you get outside of their bedding area, you'll start to see rubs spaced apart along a trail. You can sometimes tell when and what time a buck made the rubs by looking at which side of the tree the rub is on.
If the rubbed part of the tree is facing the feeding area, it's likely this rub was made by a buck on his way back to his bed. That's generally in the Mornings.
On the other hand, if you find the bare part of a rub facing the thicker bedding area, it's likely the buck made the rub in the afternoon or evening as he is heading to the feeding area.
In big woods areas, I've also found these types of rubs between Doe groups. I can generally find these along ridgelines or along remove waterways such as creek beds.
