Before the explosion of fishing threads start, I'd like to put this out for discussion. Perhaps the real farmers(Chowder), or the guys with 200 trail cams(Rebel) can provide some insight.
Every year around now, a few Big slammer bucks slip up, despite the increased pressure in the woods. My observations lead me to believe that its the few unbred does or doe fawns that do them in. Once the mature bucks get into the "groove", they are reluctant to stop.
My questions are; Do the big alpha does run from the yearlings until they "hook up" with the desired dominant buck? or; When the time is right and he's not there to fight for her, will she "stand" for a lesser buck? I know that the 2nd or late rut action is two fold, does that cycled in and went unbred will come into heat approx a month later, and fawn does will sometimes come into heat later than the mature does.
I have seen an exceptional amount of chasing this season, involving first racked bucks. I think the property we are hunting on is "doe heavy". Despite that, the does look like there's nary a chance of them ever standing for one of "micros". We all have a fair amount of night time pics of good bucks, but have seen none of them chase, and a few "cruise" sightings. I'm sure the buck to doe ratio has everything to do with the dynamics of the rut. Love to hear others observations.