Shedding happens every year in between the months of January and April. This one here really is the million-dollar question. Part of the reason for this is the fact that deer use their antlers for specific reasons during the breeding season. Deer in the wild will live in conditions that will vary from year to year. Shed hunting can also be a scouting tool for landowners to assess the amount and quality of deer on their land. The antler-growing process begins almost as soon as the antlers are dropped. The 2020 shed hunting season is here in Illinois and thousands of antlers have hit the ground! Although we have had a half-hearted winter so far here in West-Central Illinois, it seems we have experienced an earlier shedding than typical in our area. This time of the year, bucks are dropping their antlers because they no longer need to use them for battles over females. The animal is called an eight-point buck for its eight antlers, according to the Noble Research Institute, an agriculture research organization. Antlers are made up of a honeycombed bone-like tissue. We need to remember these were controlled conditions and these findings won’t predict when deer will shed their antlers in wild conditions. Antler shedding is the process in which the bucks shed off their antlers completely to grow a new set of antlers. Hunters from all around the globe scramble after hunting season to collect the biggest set of antlers. You can still go find a wonderful set of antlers without harming the animal. At times, bucks shed their antlers earlier depending on three factors: age, health, and location of the deer. Every year, whitetail deer, mule deer, elk and various other hoofed mammals shed their antlers. In Minnesota, most bucks shed their antlers about mid-January. Antlers are dropped, or cast, and grow back over a period of months while covered in a furry skin called velvet. When growth is complete the velvet is rubbed off and the antler is described as clean. Why do deer shed their antlers every season rather than growing horns? Growth peaks in late August throughout most of the whitetail range. The mounting points on the heads of deer from which the antlers grow are called pedicles. It may surprise you to find out that the entire shedding process takes only two to three weeks to complete, and of course the re-growth phase takes place over the summer up into very early fall. Bucks shed their antlers between January and April, depending upon many factors including the animal’s age and the latitude at which it lives, after the mating season concludes. The five British deer species which carry antlers replace them every year. Numerous whitetail deer experts have collected their fair share of antlers over the years, and they will all tell you similar things. 61 Comments on When Do White-tailed Bucks Shed Their Antlers White-tailed deer shed their antlers every year prior to the re-growth of new ones. When Do Deer Shed Their Antlers . Shed hunting is an alternative to kill hunting. Older animals tend to cast and clean their antlers first. So, shed hunting is the perfect way to go find a beautiful set of freshly dropped antlers. Deer use antlers for fighting, which creates a lot of wear and tear. In these environmental conditions the deer shed their antlers at the same time every year. Deer shed antlers … The dropping of the antlers may take place within 24 to 48 hours, but the entire shedding process may take as long as two to three weeks before the antlers actually fall off. Most bucks shed their velvet between mid-August and mid-September. 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