Moose Rut

[Husky7mm]

I thought the peak of the moose rut in central B.C was the begining of OCT. but someone told me they think Begining of Sept.Any thoughts?

[Jelvis]

Husky; I'm not sure if the moose rut is the same in your area but in south central B.C. I talked to quite a few moose hunters and some game guys as well as read info on moose rut. Conclusion was sept 15 thru october. The peak was oct 6, 7, 8th. Of course this is a guess like anything else but that is what I go by.

[PGKris]

Never heard of that. I'd say whoever told you that had a few too many? End of sept thru 2nd week october.

[Bushman]

Shiras & Canada Moose


Breeding occurs from mid-September through mid-October. Cow moose attract males with both calls and the scent of estrous. Bulls as do all ungulates engage in fights with other bulls to win the right to breed the cow moose. Bull moose behavior during mating season includes scraping their antlers on trees, creating wallows to roll in, not eating causing large weight loss and they become more aggressive than usual and may charge at people and cars.

Cows start breeding at one and a half years old. Gestation is approximately 230 days. Moose are polyestrous. If the cow isn't bred she will recycle approximately every 23 days. They will continue to come into heat into March and may have as many as seven estrous periods. Most calves are born near the end of May. Cows usually give birth to one offspring but if the range is healthy two calves arenÕt uncommon. Calves have reddish-brown coats and weigh 24 to 35 pounds at birth. A yearling calf will stay with its mother until new calves are born. Calves weigh 300 to 400 pounds by fall.

Moose habitat varies with the season. In spring and summer they can be found in marshy areas, meadows as well as higher elevations. During winter moose prefer forest but can often be found in valley bottoms eating willow bushes. Before the fall rut bulls tend to remain in one area for long periods of time.

Sources:
http://www.free-press.biz/Hunting-Shiras-Moose.html
http://www.mooseworld.com/biologist.htm
http://www.rainypasslodge.com/moose.htm
http://www.worldclassoutdoors.com/albertamoosehunting.htm

[moosecaller]

Never heard of that. I'd say whoever told you that had a few too many? End of sept thru 2nd week october.

I would have to agree with PGKris here the times he has mentioned here are probably the peak times. That is not to say the moose will not respond outside of these times as I have experienced many times that they do. I would narrow this to the last week of Sept. until around the 15th of Oct. this has been my findings around PG anyway for the last 18 years.

[heybert]

Have always hunted moose the last few days of Sept to the first 10 days of Oct. Always hear the big boys calling.

[lip_ripper00]

on avarage I say your right, but did any body find any difference last season? + or - of this time?

[Krico]

Husky-whoever told you that is out to lunch. The peak is end of Sept, beginning of Oct.

[PGKris]

on avarage I say your right, but did any body find any difference last season? + or - of this time?

Well as far as I'm concerned there was no rut in 7-24 last year LOL! We missed it totally. Either that or the bulls went nocturnal cause it was clear every night. But other than that, there was the right amount of sign on the right days...so? I dunno. That was a weird one.

As of right now, right now, remember this! I am predicting an early rut. A week or so earlier than usual. So peak about the 1st/2nd of october.
Remember who called it!
:biggrin:
Kris

[boonerbuck]

Mid Sept to Oct 10th is usually the best action in the bottom half of BC. Earlier in the far north province.

Kris, last year Oct was a bust in the Bulkey Valley. I brought the bow along for the Oct 1st opener. First hour of our trip on Sept 25th I called in a bull for my friend to take with his rifle. By the time my father showed up and I started to bow hunt Oct 1st, it shut right off. Locals said the same thing. There is no shortage of moose in this area too.

Strange. The year before I was calling them in Oct 12th still.

[Jelvis]

Count 230 days back of May 31st got a calculator, most calves are born about May 31st. So 230 days gestation period for the average moose. May 31st go back 230 days = the day the moose made out. So the Bull was really excited some days before that and was still excited a few days or so, after that date, I have to find my calculator. If theres any U.B.C. or Simon Fraser grads out there could you posslbly find that date? If not I'm going to have to say it, Houston, we got a problem.

[jessbennett]

ive called in moose at the end of oct. i was born and raised in pg, did alot of hunting there and i knoiw for a fact that there are two ruts a primary and a secondary. two years ago in the cariboo lake area outside of likely, i called in two big bulls in the first week of nov. the moose up there wouldnt answer calls untill the middle of oct. any one explain this one??

[talver]

Well as far as I'm concerned there was no rut in 7-24 last year LOL! We missed it totally. Either that or the bulls went nocturnal cause it was clear every night. But other than that, there was the right amount of sign on the right days...so? I dunno. That was a weird one.

As of right now, right now, remember this! I am predicting an early rut. A week or so earlier than usual. So peak about the 1st/2nd of october.
Remember who called it!
:biggrin:
Kris
I will have to agree with you on 7-24 last year we got our bulls but I only heard one bull grunt in 17 days no cow calls other tan my own and no wallow, or much sgn that the rut had started or had already ended. we were up there from the last week of sept past the beging of calves season. And they werent nocturnal cuz we were in our hunting spots a hour and a half before first light cuz we thought they were nocturnal but nothing. As for a early rut I think yiou maybe right on the money it looks like the same as three years ago and that was a good year for calling

[moosecaller]

As of right now, right now, remember this! I am predicting an early rut. A week or so earlier than usual. So peak about the 1st/2nd of october.
Remember who called it!
:biggrin:
Kris[/quote]
The rut is based on the hours of daylight (photosynthesis) this is what the animals use as their clocks. This is why most young born in the spring from a successful first mating are only a few days apart. Predict all you want unless the earth turns on it's axis and throws everything for a loop there is no such thing as an early rut! This is simply animal science stuff.

[Krico]

I think too many guys decide that on the day they have success that must be the peak of the rut, and that if they get no answers to their calls that the rut must not be on yet. Moosecaller is correct, the number of hours of daylight trigger the rut. It is not whether there was an early blast of cold weather, a hot summer, or any other silly reason you may read.
And how exactly is one to determine that the rut is at it's peak? A conclusion based on the interpretation of one hunter or even a few groups of hunters is rather subjective and not the least bit scientific.

[PGKris]

OK we didn't need to take what I said too seriously now boys......twas only a prediction. And I'm confused as to how moose use photosynthesis......that's a plant process..... ???

[moosecaller]

Daylight and the amount of it controls the body's internal clock--which controls daily rhythms of body temperature, hormone secretion, (secreted from the pineal gland; melatonin) and sleep patterns--shifts ahead or is delayed when stimulated by light or lack of it. You are absolutly right this is a plant process but most people are familar with this and can relate to the affect that it has on all living organisms. It has a direct relationship to the amount of melatonin that the body produces and this has been shown to be a direct link to influence estus in mammals, the less light the more melatonin produced hence the rut. I did not want to get into a long boring biology session here that is why I mistakenly used the term photosynthesis, thanks for picking up on this you obviously payed attention during that class.

[PGKris]

I had an interesting prof......I was always under the conclusion that temperature was the deciding factor in the timing of the moose rut....which is why I predict an "early" rut. Hours of daylight remains the same each year, which is exactly why we can predict when the rut will happen each year (EG: End of september through 2nd week october). But we all know that the rut can be, for lack of a better term...."off" by a few days each year. EG: one year you call in most animals from the 2nd-5th of october. The year after, you get the most response between the 8th-14th.
I'm only sayin that the rut will peak early this year (cause I make genious predictions that usually turn out to be true. And I'm kinda crazy too) ;)

[Gus]

Hours of daylight remains the same each year, which is exactly why we can predict when the rut will happen each year (EG: End of september through 2nd week october). But we all know that the rut can be, for lack of a better term...."off" by a few days each year. EG: one year you call in most animals from the 2nd-5th of october. The year after, you get the most response between the 8th-14th.

I've heard bulls answer a call in the end of august......okay, it only happened once, but thought i'd just throw that out there.:razz:

[PGKris]

You were drunk. Forget about it.

[Schmaus]

I'm going to go with this......
the daylight hours predict when the moose will start feeling horny and the temperature usually dictates how aggresively they are ie: cold = really active aggressive moose.

I don't know what happened over in 7-24 last year but across the highway in 7-16 the action was good the last week in september just like it always is.

[talver]

I'm going to go with this......
the daylight hours predict when the moose will start feeling horny and the temperature usually dictates how aggresively they are ie: cold = really active aggressive moose.

I don't know what happened over in 7-24 last year but across the highway in 7-16 the action was good the last week in september just like it always is.
Right on the money 7-24 was dead last year and 7 16 the mosse were going good

[ASPEN]

7-24 -OCT 10-14 -Interupted a couple bulls doing the nasty!Previous week hot and heavy in 7-44

[Schmaus]

ewwww gay bulls

[PGKris]

lmao :lol:

[Husky7mm]

7-24 -OCT 10-14 -Interupted a couple bulls doing the nasty!Previous week hot and heavy in 7-44 Were you hunting on broke back mountain again?

[ASPEN]

okay-okay- sorry to ruin your fun-should have been more specific-they were with cows!

[yote]

LOL!!!!:lol: :lol:

[Dirty]

I have personally had moose call and respond to calling in Region 3 in between the 1st and 9th of November. I also visually saw evidence of fresh mating/fighting on the road from the previous night. There were tracks everywhere and hair covering the road. In addition, the very large bull we shot was in the company of a cow. Call me crazy but it sure seemed like they were rutting hot and heavy when we were hunting.

[PGKris]

Second rut. Up here we have a second short rut about the 23-26 of october. Tough to pinpoint it though. Hit and miss every year. Mostly depends on how many cows get bred the first time.
PGK

[abbyfireguy]

The years when the last 2 weeks of September were hot weather the rut seems to get delayd a bit....The years we had good hard frost or freezes in the 3rd week of September seemed to get the rut going....
After 29 years of observing this behavior in the same area (5:13-6:01-7:11)I'll go with what I see, not from a sheet of stats that have or can be manipulated ....
First hand observations over a lengthy period in the same area have more realistic value to me as a moose hunter....

[bochunk2000]

First hand observations over a lengthy period in the same area have more realistic value to me as a moose hunter....

Based on that does anyone have any thoughts on the first 2 weeks of Oct in Ft. St. James? I'm going on my first Moose trip since I was a kid and I could use any help I can get. Thanks Steve.

[30-06]

yea last year around fort fraser and that therewhere no moose to be found.or all 12 of us in our group were just having bad luck

[hunter1947]

My thought on the peak of the moose rut is the first week of oct,central part of BC ,the further north you go the earler the rut, just my opinuion ,hunter47.

[ratherbefishin]

I have observed what appears to be an''early ''rut with blacktails[here on southern Vancouver Island] around the end of september,with the main rut a month later, and then another minor rut a month after that-sort of 3 ruts-which seems to explain the big fawns, regular sized fawns,and the little runty guys the following summer.Is the same pattern true of moose?

[Hanrahan]

Hunted 6-8 up by babine lake last sept 25 through 30. Ran into some guys we knew on their way back from the same area. "Moose everywhere, cows bawling all over the place. Called in three bulls in one day. Everyone had their moose in the first two days... blah blah blah."
We must have missed the rut because we saw a few cows, all on the move towards deep timber, and only saw one bull, on the other side of a lake. (no boat:frown: ) He wouldn't cross that lake for anything. In five days we didn't hear one call. Saw about half a dozen gut piles though. At least somebody did well. Anyway, the point is I think the rut up in that area was 3rd week of sept or so last year. Going earlier this year.