Every date below is peak breeding (conception) from a state agency fetal/reproductive study or an official agency statement — the biology, not hunting folklore. Rows are tagged: study means measured conception data; agency estimate means the agency's published statement without a cited study. Visible chasing and seeking typically build in the days-to-2-weeks before peak conception, and daytime movement varies with weather even though the breeding dates themselves barely move year to year.
| State | Peak breeding window | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Peak in January statewide; ~17% of conceptions run into February | study | J. SEAFWA fetal study (Gray et al.) |
| Arkansas | Mean conception ~Nov 13 (northern AR) | study cited | Wilson & Sealander, cited in Okla. Acad. Sci. |
| Florida | Extreme spread: South FL July–Aug → Panhandle mid-Jan–Feb | study | FWC breeding chronology |
| Georgia | Late Oct → Dec depending on county — use the state map | study | GA WRD/UGA county rut map |
| Illinois | Mean conception Nov 10 (adults Nov 8; fawns Dec 2) | study | INHS/IL DNR fetal study |
| Iowa | ~First week of November | agency estimate | Iowa DNR |
| Louisiana | Varies widely by area — SE runs ~5 weeks later; use the LDWF map | study | LDWF breeding periods map |
| Mississippi | Extreme SE runs ~5 weeks later than the Delta — zone dates on the MDWFP map | study | MDWFP breeding date map |
| Missouri | November; ~Nov 16 in cited conception data | agency + cited study | MU Extension/MDC G9479 |
| New York | Mid-November | agency estimate | NYS DEC |
| North Carolina | SE Oct 31 → NE Nov 8 → Central Nov 15 → Northwestern Nov 25 → Western Dec 5 | study | NC WRC conception dates (1,776 samples) |
| Ohio | ~Nov 3–16 (adult does) | study cited | Cited in INHS Midwest paper |
| Oklahoma | Mean conception Nov 13 (eastern OK) | study | Okla. Acad. Sci. embryo study |
| Pennsylvania | Mid-November (6,000+ doe fetal study) | study | PA Game Commission |
| South Carolina | Most of state mid-Oct–mid-Nov; Upstate later (late Nov) | agency (repro data) | SCDNR reproduction map |
| Texas | Gulf Prairies early Oct → Pineywoods mid-Nov → South TX late Dec — big regional table | study | TPWD fetal study (2,436 does) |
| Virginia | Peak conception ~Nov 16 | agency (fawn-date derived) | VA DWR |
| Wisconsin | Late Oct through mid-November | agency estimate | WI DNR |
No defensible published data located for: Michigan, Minnesota, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Kansas — rather than invent dates, we suggest the nearest studied neighbor (e.g., WI/IA patterns for MN; OH/IL for IN) and will add rows when an agency source surfaces.
Why these dates barely move — and what does move
Deer breeding is driven by photoperiod — shortening day length — which is why the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission notes there's little year-to-year variation in peak breeding within a given area, and why Pennsylvania's big fetal study found the popular "rutting moon" theory didn't predict conception dates. What changes year to year is what you see: hot spells suppress daytime movement, cold fronts unleash it, and local doe age structure and sex ratios stretch or compress the visible chase. Plan vacation days around the biology; adjust stand hours around the weather.
The southern gradient is real and dramatic: the same species breeds in July in the Everglades, October on the Texas coast, November across most of the whitetail belt, and February in parts of Mississippi and the Florida panhandle. If your state has a zone map linked above, trust the zone over the state average.