Recalcitrant Behavior! Death Wish!!

[Faybeau]

Last night, our rooster (6 months old) decided that he was NOT going to join The Ladies in the coop-yard at dusk! He remained in the garden and continued to cluck-cluck-cluck loudly, calling to our 15 hens to ‘return’ to him. Remaining unfazed by offers of scratch & avoiding being corralled, he continued to roam freely as the yard darkened. We continued to keep an eye on him as local wild-life would love a nice, warm Chicken Dinner!
After locking-down The Girls, we continued our vigil; finally, Mr. Rooster decided to roost on an iron fence (only about 3 feet off the ground). Once it was dark, I plucked him off the fence and placed him on the roost with the hens in the inner-coop. If this behavior continues, he will not be long for this world (he seemed extremely determined)! I also do NOT want him to tempt the hens into joining him in the larger yard! ~~YIKES~~
My question is this: Do roosters (or hens, for that matter) just arbitrarily change their roosting habits and decide they will NOT go into their coop area at dusk in favor of roosting in the yard? Should I keep ALL locked-down for a few days? Any thoughts about this behavior, in general, would be appreciated; nothing in my Chicken Guide addresses this issue.

 

[cafarmgirl]

My roosters have always been the exact opposite, shooing their hens into the coop at dusk, usually well before the hens want to go in. Are there any issues with the coop situation that is perhaps making him reluctant to roost there? Is there enough roost space? Is he getting bullied by a bossy hen when it's time to roost? Does the coop get plenty of ventilation and natural light?

 

[Faybeau]

They have the Taj Mahal of chicken coops; large, dry, well ventilated and cleaned daily. I've not noticed any out-of-the-usual Hen Aggression, although one of the older chickens IS pretty bossy with the flock, in general. Today, they are all hanging out per usual in the garden. This morning, I noticed when I went up to let them out of the coop into their chicken-yard (I don't let them into the garden until late morning), Mr. Rooster remained on the roost for a few minutes AFTER all the other chickens had cleared out. THAT is the only 'out of the ordinary' observation, so far today. He definitely seemed initially reluctant to join the hens! By the time I'd fed them, changed water, etc., he was down with the hens eating, per usual, however. This evening, it will be interesting to see if we have a repeat of last nights drama (?). Thank you so much for trying to help me figure this out; greatly appreciated! Your suggestion that Mr. Rooster is perhaps being 'bullied' is certainly something to consider!! I will watch closely ......