Rutting sign appears earlier than it should and lasts longer into the season. In extreme cases, low-level breeding activity may appear to actually overlap the secondary rut while never fully achieving the peak of the primary. Living and hunting in the South, I've seen it often. These conditions may also sound familiar to hunters in parts of the Northeast and the upper Midwest. In places where hunters are reluctant to take does, or in places where deer are managed for quantity rather than quality, buck-doe ratios often exceed 1 to 4 or more.
Overpopulation degrades deer food supplies.
An extended but low-intensity rut is often the result. It is a subtle but progressive process. Adequate nutrition is necessary for a doe to come into estrus. With poor food conditions, individual does begin to achieve proper breeding condition at different times. Also, with too many does present, the available bucks may not find them all during their first estrus period.