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Like a heavyweight fighter entering the 15th round, bulls nearing the end of the rut are haggard and beaten to exhaustion. Sleeping little, eating even less, and hopped up on rivers of testosterone, the biggest bulls can lose up to 20 percent of their body weight protecting their harems by the end of the rut. Fighting bulls receive on average 30 to 50 wounds each season. Antlers break, eyes get gouged. Sometimes bulls actually gore their opponents to death. Far more bulls succumb to infections from their wounds.
After aspen leaves fall and snow blankets the high country, the bugles fade and the rut comes to a close. Most bulls go solo or pair up through November and some of December to lick their wounds and hide from hunters. By January, bulls set aside their grudges and group together until deep snow drives them to lower elevations.