Moon

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Dhoff
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Moon

Unread postby Dhoff » Tue Feb 11, 2020 6:24 am

I have never understood how to read the moon and how it translates to the outdoors. I hear a lot of people say over head under foot but i just cant grasp it. Ive searched the forum to try and find an old thread that would help dumb it down for me. Any help or opinions would be appreciated. Just trying to add it to the tool belt.


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Re: Moon

Unread postby Rich M » Tue Feb 11, 2020 7:15 am

Y'know, there is a lot of research on the moon and things like feed periods.

Personally find that feed periods help us catch bigger sea trout cause they seem to feed at those times. But I can catch sea trout all the time. So does it really make a difference? Seems to for the larger "trophy" trout.

Now, I used to believe that the full moon was death for deer hunting and resultingly my experiences mirrored my expectations. But most of my hunting was like that.
Then 6 yrs ago I hunted somewhere with "this guy" and he shot 2 big bucks on the full moon while I saw more deer than ever before on that same full moon.

So, it started to get fuzzy - everyone else says full moon bad this but my experience now says the opposite, deer do move during shooting hours on a full moon. Hmm.

Then I learned how to scout a bit better and started heading away from the other hunters into weird areas and suddenly was finding more sign and seeing more deer.

Turned out "this guy" and I were hunting bedding areas. See more deer now than I used to see before no matter what the moon phase is or what the feeding periods are - all based on location.

Do the moon things affect deer movement? I'm sure they do. Same for cold fronts and hot steamy days.

Ever wonder why some days you see deer standing out in the middle of a field at high noon? Me too. LOL!

Last time I hunted (about a month ago). Friday night midnight - Saturday 6 Am a cold front came thru with heavy rain. Lotsa deer were out for a bit after it went by, then they moved heavy Saturday before dark and fed all that night and were on the move as I was entering the woods an hour before sunup Sunday AM. Didn't see a deer until about 9-930 when I had to leave and head for home, season over. Seems like the cold front and lack of feeding early on Saturday am had em out and feeding heavy Sat PM and early Sunday AM - predawn.

Wish I had more for you. Maybe you can journal - keep track of what you see and when, then compare to the moon phase, feed periods, weather, and wind. I never did, but the guys I know who do better than most do journal and track all that stuff. Say it helps them hunt better, easier to remember stuff.

I think JoeRE (check spelling) has some good stuff on moons.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Feb 11, 2020 7:40 am

Moon affects every living creature on earth. Pay attention to how u feel/sleep/urges during the diff phases. Ever wonder why when u are driving cross country and all the cows are up feeding miles and miles apart at the same time? Or all bedded at the same time chewing cud? What about deer? If u live in farm country and a ag field is packed u can bet they all are. Does the moon cause spikes in vehicular accidents? Does the moon trigger aggression, to a point u can pretty much predict how long u got b4 racks start getting busted up? For me yes. However, there’s only one thing that trumps moon, weather and the breeding season. Pressure! That said I’ve seen some YouTube clips lately of guys hunting the heaviest hunted states in the U.S on public and arrowing giants not known to exist in wide open fields so I dunno.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby EllieTheChubb » Tue Feb 11, 2020 9:12 am

Dr. Mickey Hellickson did a two year telemetry study on deer movement. There was no correlation between moon phase and deer movement in the data.

People also say arrests and hospital admissions go up around the full moon (I know thats not the only moon theory). This has been debunked by hard data. My point is there's an obvious problem with individual observations. As a species we try to find patterns in nature to try to make sense of things. In short we see what we want to see.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby headgear » Tue Feb 11, 2020 9:15 am

EllieTheChubb wrote:There was no correlation between moon phase and deer movement in the data.


Most here who talk about the moon don't look at moon phases, completely different term. Look up overhead and underfoot times, works well for turkey's and fish too.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Cchez » Tue Feb 11, 2020 9:51 am

Moon Overhead = when the moon is at it highest point in transit over the earth during the day.
Moon Underfoot = the exact opposite.

The idea is that these two points are when the moon has the strongest effect on things like tides and animal feeding patterns during the day, regardless of moon phase (full, quarter, new, etc.). There's lots of people who plan their entire hunts around these times, then there's plenty of us average guys who don't have the time or flexibility to do that, so we hunt when we can regardless of the moon's position.

Adam Hayes is a big proponent of these moon times (probably because he own's the "moon guide'). You can listen to him on some different podcasts where he talks about it more. But basically what he says is each month has a certain number of days where the moon overhead or underfoot coincides with either sunrise or sunset. He calls these "red moon days". According to him, these are the "best days" for killing a mature buck. Reason being, deer naturally move more in these low light transition periods, they have a natural urge to get up and head to feed. Throw in the strong pull of the moon along with these daylight transitions and he says it has an even more powerful effect on them.

All that being said, I am by no means an expert on any of this. Yes, i've seen deer feeding during these times. I've also had days where i don't. I'll add that everyone will tell you though that weather and the rut trump the moon.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Feb 11, 2020 10:24 am

I view studies like political stories and local news. Depending on what channel u watch u will here reports with charts and graphs to support it. Give me any topic u want and I can find a collar study or University study to support it.

Don’t care if anyone believes it or not, the info is free to anyone who pays attention. You don’t a need a calendar or anything else. Ask any serious fisherman when is the time to lay the wood, ask a rancher who breeds livestock when they come in heat or feed, look in the farmer’s almanac when to plant, attend a party or go to a club on a half and full moon and see which is more “entertaining.”

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Re: Moon

Unread postby Dhoff » Tue Feb 11, 2020 10:46 am

Boogieman1 wrote:Moon affects every living creature on earth. Pay attention to how u feel/sleep/urges during the diff phases. Ever wonder why when u are driving cross country and all the cows are up feeding miles and miles apart at the same time? Or all bedded at the same time chewing cud? What about deer? If u live in farm country and a ag field is packed u can bet they all are. Does the moon cause spikes in vehicular accidents? Does the moon trigger aggression, to a point u can pretty much predict how long u got b4 racks start getting busted up? For me yes. However, there’s only one thing that trumps moon, weather and the breeding season. Pressure! That said I’ve seen some YouTube clips lately of guys hunting the heaviest hunted states in the U.S on public and arrowing giants not known to exist in wide open fields so I dunno.

Its funny you mention the vehicle accidents. I actually work in a body shop and ive always wanted to chart deer collisions on the calendar and track it to use as a reference. Just seems every year i say im going to but i dont keep up on it. I live in western Wisconsin and have pretty good deer numbers... in my opinion. Depends on whos counting. I can tell you i always save my vacation for the fall and it usually gets denied because we are buried in deer hit cars.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Dhoff » Tue Feb 11, 2020 11:00 am

Cchez wrote:Moon Overhead = when the moon is at it highest point in transit over the earth during the day.
Moon Underfoot = the exact opposite.

The idea is that these two points are when the moon has the strongest effect on things like tides and animal feeding patterns during the day, regardless of moon phase (full, quarter, new, etc.). There's lots of people who plan their entire hunts around these times, then there's plenty of us average guys who don't have the time or flexibility to do that, so we hunt when we can regardless of the moon's position.

Adam Hayes is a big proponent of these moon times (probably because he own's the "moon guide'). You can listen to him on some different podcasts where he talks about it more. But basically what he says is each month has a certain number of days where the moon overhead or underfoot coincides with either sunrise or sunset. He calls these "red moon days". According to him, these are the "best days" for killing a mature buck. Reason being, deer naturally move more in these low light transition periods, they have a natural urge to get up and head to feed. Throw in the strong pull of the moon along with these daylight transitions and he says it has an even more powerful effect on them.

All that being said, I am by no means an expert on any of this. Yes, i've seen deer feeding during these times. I've also had days where i don't. I'll add that everyone will tell you though that weather and the rut trump the moon.


Thanks. That helps. Yea im not looking for winning powerball numbers or anything like that. Just trying to get a better understanding. I have listened to Adam Hayes and he makes it sound like its the winning ticket.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby mheichelbech » Tue Feb 11, 2020 11:43 am

Just google and find a free chart for best hunting times. I do believe in them to the extent that deer aren’t pressured or affected by other factors such as weather. For example, if you had 2-4 days of steady smooth weather on either side of when the chart recommends hunting and they aren’t heavily pressured I think you could depend on them moving at the appointed times. It’s so hard to tell...we’re they moving and your just in the wrong spot? Did a coyote spook them or another hunter?

I think for mature bucks, guys mainly rely on the moon for being able to get a mature buck moving earlier in evenings or coming to bed later in mornings, by 10-15 minutes...meaning if you are as close as you can get to a buck’s bed and his still isn’t getting to your stand in daylight, on moon days it may get you that extra 10-15 minutes of him moving earlier or coming back later that you can get a shot.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Feb 11, 2020 1:01 pm

Dhoff wrote:
Boogieman1 wrote:Moon affects every living creature on earth. Pay attention to how u feel/sleep/urges during the diff phases. Ever wonder why when u are driving cross country and all the cows are up feeding miles and miles apart at the same time? Or all bedded at the same time chewing cud? What about deer? If u live in farm country and a ag field is packed u can bet they all are. Does the moon cause spikes in vehicular accidents? Does the moon trigger aggression, to a point u can pretty much predict how long u got b4 racks start getting busted up? For me yes. However, there’s only one thing that trumps moon, weather and the breeding season. Pressure! That said I’ve seen some YouTube clips lately of guys hunting the heaviest hunted states in the U.S on public and arrowing giants not known to exist in wide open fields so I dunno.

Its funny you mention the vehicle accidents. I actually work in a body shop and ive always wanted to chart deer collisions on the calendar and track it to use as a reference. Just seems every year i say im going to but i dont keep up on it. I live in western Wisconsin and have pretty good deer numbers... in my opinion. Depends on whos counting. I can tell you i always save my vacation for the fall and it usually gets denied because we are buried in deer hit cars.


Standby for a couple days and save your time. I will give ya a certified copy of this years DVC’s for Wisconsin. Deer vehicular collisions, along with daylight vs dark. I will see if it’s feasible to correspond with Boone & Crockett reports and the kill zone. Hunters can say whatever they want but the fact is more guys take to the woods opening day of bow season than any other day of the year on deer that have not been hunted. And yet percentage wise for success vs other times of the year it’s extremely low. As the old espn show goes, numbers don’t lie.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby Dhoff » Tue Feb 11, 2020 1:35 pm

Boogieman1 wrote:
Dhoff wrote:
Boogieman1 wrote:Moon affects every living creature on earth. Pay attention to how u feel/sleep/urges during the diff phases. Ever wonder why when u are driving cross country and all the cows are up feeding miles and miles apart at the same time? Or all bedded at the same time chewing cud? What about deer? If u live in farm country and a ag field is packed u can bet they all are. Does the moon cause spikes in vehicular accidents? Does the moon trigger aggression, to a point u can pretty much predict how long u got b4 racks start getting busted up? For me yes. However, there’s only one thing that trumps moon, weather and the breeding season. Pressure! That said I’ve seen some YouTube clips lately of guys hunting the heaviest hunted states in the U.S on public and arrowing giants not known to exist in wide open fields so I dunno.

Its funny you mention the vehicle accidents. I actually work in a body shop and ive always wanted to chart deer collisions on the calendar and track it to use as a reference. Just seems every year i say im going to but i dont keep up on it. I live in western Wisconsin and have pretty good deer numbers... in my opinion. Depends on whos counting. I can tell you i always save my vacation for the fall and it usually gets denied because we are buried in deer hit cars.


Standby for a couple days and save your time. I will give ya a certified copy of this years DVC’s for Wisconsin. Deer vehicular collisions, along with daylight vs dark. I will see if it’s feasible to correspond with Boone & Crockett reports and the kill zone. Hunters can say whatever they want but the fact is more guys take to the woods opening day of bow season than any other day of the year on deer that have not been hunted. And yet percentage wise for success vs other times of the year it’s extremely low. As the old espn show goes, numbers don’t lie.

Wow that would be awesome.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby raisins » Tue Feb 11, 2020 3:22 pm

Dhoff wrote:
Boogieman1 wrote:
Dhoff wrote:
Boogieman1 wrote:Moon affects every living creature on earth. Pay attention to how u feel/sleep/urges during the diff phases. Ever wonder why when u are driving cross country and all the cows are up feeding miles and miles apart at the same time? Or all bedded at the same time chewing cud? What about deer? If u live in farm country and a ag field is packed u can bet they all are. Does the moon cause spikes in vehicular accidents? Does the moon trigger aggression, to a point u can pretty much predict how long u got b4 racks start getting busted up? For me yes. However, there’s only one thing that trumps moon, weather and the breeding season. Pressure! That said I’ve seen some YouTube clips lately of guys hunting the heaviest hunted states in the U.S on public and arrowing giants not known to exist in wide open fields so I dunno.

Its funny you mention the vehicle accidents. I actually work in a body shop and ive always wanted to chart deer collisions on the calendar and track it to use as a reference. Just seems every year i say im going to but i dont keep up on it. I live in western Wisconsin and have pretty good deer numbers... in my opinion. Depends on whos counting. I can tell you i always save my vacation for the fall and it usually gets denied because we are buried in deer hit cars.


Standby for a couple days and save your time. I will give ya a certified copy of this years DVC’s for Wisconsin. Deer vehicular collisions, along with daylight vs dark. I will see if it’s feasible to correspond with Boone & Crockett reports and the kill zone. Hunters can say whatever they want but the fact is more guys take to the woods opening day of bow season than any other day of the year on deer that have not been hunted. And yet percentage wise for success vs other times of the year it’s extremely low. As the old espn show goes, numbers don’t lie.

Wow that would be awesome.


This is a really cool idea. I'll throw out a few issues that you'd have to take into account that can mask the signal (deer movement). Here's two: 1. at night visibility is lower and drivers are more likely to hit any deer in the road and 2. during rain/snow/icy roads you are less able to avoid safely any deer you see. That's regarding timing. Over the land, areas with twisty roads or more roadside cover will have less visibility and people are more likely to hit deer. Speed limit probably matters also.

You could actually turn this into a pretty large study, I think.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby SplitG2 » Wed Feb 12, 2020 5:40 am

Think about this for a moment.....the moon theory has been around for awhile. It has sold lots of books, magazines and DVD’s and made lots of money for some people. The theory has supposedly been proven right and the theory has supposedly been proven wrong. I just find it hard to buy into something That has supposedly been proven and disproven by so many people, so many times.

Just my opinion. When it comes to talking about all(not just the moon theory) the supposed deer movement “triggers“ you have consistency and you have coincidence. For something to be more than coincidence, there has to be consistency to it. For me and my hunting experience, I believe the moon theory(and most others) can be explained as coincidence because I just simply don’t see enough consistency in the moon phases and deer movement to make it anything more than that. I’ve seen good and bad movement on every single moon phase and or position And with just about every weather condition possible. Weather Triggered movement has consistency to it way more often than not but for me, the moon has Never proven to be anything more than coincidental to me.

The moon is just something you have to form your own opinion on, just like all other triggers. Each herd and area hunts differently. It’s something that will never be proven or disproven when it comes to deer, too many inconsistencies for that to be possible.
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Re: Moon

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Wed Feb 12, 2020 6:06 am

100% of all the deer I have taken were taken while the moon was circling the earth. :D Just kidding of course.

No one will ever know for sure if it does or does not effect wild deer behavior because you cannot eliminate other variables. I can just attest to the fact that the more I run cameras, the more I find absolutely no correlation to moon Overhead or Underfoot. I do see some peak in late AM during full moon - but even that is sketchy. I think there are far more important factors that influence deer movement. But we each will make our own interpretation of what we perceive out in the deer woods. I used to hear the same thing about hospital ERs and baby births - but a little research shows that is not as true as most want to think - and yet some ER DRs/nurses and pediatricians swear full moon influences things…… but hospital records don't correlate to that. :think:


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