What happens to velvet after a buck/stag has cleaned ?

SecretStalker.308

Well-Known Member
i have visited many Roe bucks territories and seen where the lie up and sleep ,where they browse, where they graze, their escape routes are in case of danger ( in woodland) and so on but what never seases to amaze me is what happens to the velvet on a bucks antlers after they have frayed.

the aim of a buck rubbing his antlers up and down a young sapling or certain tree of their selection is of three reasons
1, cleaning of velvet from antlers
2, marking their terrority using the Sub-orbital glands just under their eyes that secretes scent when fraying on a tree.
3, staining the antlers brown from the tree sap making the bucks appearance more attractive and handsome, often needed in the rut with old does that are particularly fussy about which buck they lead back to there territory or roe ring.
there may be more . . .

but what on earth happens to the velvet once frayed ?
does is drop at the base of the tree and decay, does it become fly blown because of the blood and the fly's or insects feast on it. are foxes or predatory animals partial to it, or does it just rot away. or do the bucks just rub and rub and consequently the velvet and sap mix together to give this lovely light/dark brown stained antlers classis to a Roe buck or any deer clean of velvet,

its had me stumped for ages
so please someone tell me :)

cheers steve
 
Last edited:
Steve
As the antler goes to hard horn the velvet sort of causes an itching sensation causing the deer to fray or rub
this action sort of shreds the velvet, which as it dries and constant rubbing causes it to fall off
but where it falls off may be anywhere and not nessecaerily where the fraying has taken place
in reality the velvet from the Roe will be that thin a shred you would be hard pushed to find it anyway
and possibly eaten by certain insects and animals
I hav a few pics I will try and post to give you an Idea of what it looks like
ATB
 
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