There is a cycle that occurs in every living thing. Mule deer are no exception. Since his antlers fell off in late March and began growing again immediately, to sometime in early fall, this was mid-September when his antlers have reached their full growth, and the blood filled velvet covering them has gone beyond itchy to maddening, the Mule deer has completed one of the most important cycles of its life.

Right now he is at his most vulnerable. The velvet has been mostly cleaned off by rubbing and thrashing his antlers against the shrubs and bushes, tearing away the soft blood-filled velvet, leaving the antlers stained a deep dark red. The antlers are still hardening and he can’t afford an accident like sweeping them into a tree trunk or clashing with one of his herd mates. In fact as the blood rises in each of the bucks and they begin to feel the battle lust form they want to test the new antlers out on each other. Instead of charging each other and engaging their antlers as they would in full combat, they will often rise on their hind legs and paw at each other the way the doe’s do when they fight each other, not the most dignified behavior, but if they break an antler they are out of the game.

It is still a little early for that however, and the bucks congregate in small numbers of 6 to 10 or so to hang out in groups we call the Bachelor boys. That’s not scientific nomenclature but it is accurate. That lasts until a few weeks later when the cold has descended from the high peaks and the antlers have reached their full fighting readiness. The mating urge has risen and the fellowship has disappeared from the Bachelor boys and now it’s every buck for himself. They have disbanded and will challenge each other on sight if they have begun assembling a harem.

They’re still in fattening up mode right now, packing on weight so they’re ready to face any challenger. The time of the bloody antlers is drawing to a close. The rut is here, the doe’s are watching from the meadows edge, the primary bucks are done sizing the others up and before long you’ll hear the angry bellowing, the clash of strong antlers meeting each other in combat, and the cycle completes once again. The next time the antlers will be bloodied is during battle.