Full Moon...

[beararchery]

Alright I have heard 2 theorys of the full moon, one being that the deer will be moving almost all day and the other theory is the opposite, that they wont be moving at all. I personally dont beleive any of this because I dont think that a deer will decide to bed down or move around based on the moon. I just dont know if there is any facts behind this to say that they wont move in full more or they will move better in full moon so I just dont beleive it, does anyone beleive this or not and please tell me your reason.

 

[SWIADEERHNTR]

As far as deer movement I don't really buy into the moon phases thing, I dunno...not to open any pandoras boxes of arguing on this thread cuz your opinion is your opinion, but it seems to me there are some patterns yes, but sometimes the deer just make a decision where/how to move. If you go out to eat, one time you get the club sandwich but maybe next time you just decide to get a steak. Or go to town on the highway or take the old gravel road one time. Just a decision you made.

Same with the rut. I think the length of day holds more water than the moon phase. They gotta know when to breed (does in heat which sets off the bucks) at the right time regardless of the moon so the fawns aren't born in Janruary or February for example with a lower chance of survival. Mother Nature's way...but hey, maybe I'm nuts...just what I think. : )

 

[LYON]

From personal experience, I can't really say either way because I have not put any effort into hunting moon phases. I'd like to start keeping track of the phase during my hunts just to see if it holds up. But besides that, I would agree with the thought that deer would move more during a full moon simply because of the brightness. I know they can already see much better in the dark than we can, but more light has to help. Would you rather go fishing or do outdoor activities under a bright full moon or in the pitch black? Deer also probably feel safer being out at night when they can see better. I don't know, just my thought.

 

[beararchery]

Almost exactly what I have been thinking, that its up to the deer more than the moon phases.

 

[6x6]

swiadeerhntr, I think you got that right. It may have a small effect but all things considered is a small variable. Above average temps and hunting pressure haveing way more effect. I do see on full moons the early mornings are real slow but mid day having alot of movement. I really dont believe the moon phase has any effect on timeing of the rut since every year the majority of the fawns around here are born exactly the same time, last couple days of may- 1st couple days of june.

 

[beararchery]

LYON,
I see where you are comming from, but I really dont think that the moon plays a roll in deer movement after i think a little bit about it, i think its more of the temperature.

 

[651]

swiadeerhntr, i think you got that right. It may have a small effect but all things considered is a small variable. Above average temps and hunting pressure haveing way more effect. I do see on full moons the early mornings are real slow but mid day having alot of movement. I really dont believe the moon phase has any effect on timeing of the rut since every year the majority of the fawns around here are born exactly the same time, last couple days of may- 1st couple days of june.

yep!!!!!!!!!

 

[LYON]

LYON,
I see where you are comming from, but I really dont think that the moon plays a roll in deer movement after i think a little bit about it, i think its more of the temperature.

I agree that the tempurature plays a WAY bigger role in deer movement than the moon phases. And like I said, I personally know nearly nothing about the correlation of deer movement and moon phases. However, I have read some very convincing articles in the past about guys who hunt according to the moon religiously with great success....I don't know, I'll just keep sitting in the stand as often as I can rather than waiting for the moon to be right. But if I find out anything different, I'll be sure to let you know.

 

[beararchery]

Alright, thanks and I'm going out to hunt tommorrow mourning in Missouri. I am going to start recording the deer I see, the temp, the moon phase, and type of deer.

 

[dtk913]

The only way to really know is to record everything and then analyze your observations and look for patterns. I will say that the observations our group has over the last few years, 49% of our mature buck sightings have been during a full moon phase.

I also believe from data we, and others, have gathered that above average temps have more to do with deer activity than anything else.

Our journal, The Non-Typical Whitetail Journal is a great way to study and learn about the movements, trends and patterns of the deer you hunt. It is an online personal hunting journal complete with data entry, searching and sorting through your observations and even mapping features. You can check out our site to see how it works. I am also always available to field any questions about our journal.

I am not trying to hijack the thread, but I think if hunters give our journal a try you will see that it can be one of your most useful tools, and I love to talk about what makes deer do what they do.