Whitetails Before the Rut - Trail Cam Results

Whitetails Before The Rut - Trail Cam Results

                  While mountain biking along the rail trail at Raymond Reservation, about a week ago, I almost ran over a Bobcat. I had to slam my breaks hard and It took off into the woods to the left of the path (woods in between Nobscot Rd, and the rail trail.). I Immediately took out a trail camera and set it up in the patch of forest the bobcat had ran into. Getting bobcat footage has been a goal of mine for a long time, so I was very excited about the set. 

I came back the next day to check the camera, and to add bait. I added a hot dog and some strawberries, to produce enough scent to attract them. When I checked it, there was not a single photo.

I came back a few days later, to check it again. There were 50 clips, each taken at different times of day, and all of them were of whitetail does, some of them passing through, and some of them staying for awhile, like this pair of does that were in probably 20 of the 50 clips...

There was a multiple day long rainstorm that took down a tree in our backyard. This was on September 4th. A few does passed by during this time, because now that temperatures are getting into the 60s, Animals need to start building up body fat, especially does. Does usually get fertilized during the rut (October-November) and will need more nutrients during this time. Cold rain also forces deer to burn a lot of calories while shivering, which they have to make up by foraging. The camera was switched on to night vision mode by the low light conditions, even though the video below was shot during the day.

I pulled the camera on the 8th. No bobcat.