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Full Moon vs New Moon

Hunter71

New member
Joined
Oct 6, 2002
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42
Location
North Carolina
OK guys, as promised here is a moon phase comparison. This is based upon nearly 500 days of hunting logged into my hunting survey from last year. Read it as you may, but contrary to what I beleived, the percent of hunters seeing either sex of deer at each point in time during the day is greater for a full moon than a new moon. The percentages are based upon the actual number of hunters reporting to have been in the field at each 1/2 hour time interval.
NewvFull.gif

If this interests you at all, please help out with the research at www.thehunterseye.com/sightingsurvey/sightingsurvey.htm
Its free, easy and quick.
Johnnie
 
They had a really cool article in Outdoor Life on how the moon kicks off the rut. This months issue if you want to dig it up. But according to this mag pre rut should start on 10-22-02 and peak breeding is 11-3-02. I just killed a nice buck opening day of the MT rifle season and he was chasing a doe and had a really swollen neck. As far as I'm concerned the article was dead nuts for the area I hunt.
 
Dead nuts and you got a buck, sounds pretty good to me. Lots of people write about this moon stuff.

Here's some more web page info. and literature on it.

This guy wrote about it in Texas.
http://www.texastourism.com/visitorinfo/MoonClock.asp

This guy wrote about it in Michigan.
http://www.detnews.com/2000/moresports/0009/30/d12-121064.htm

This guy wrote about it in Wisconsin.
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/sports/archive/sports_6620320.shtml

This guy wrote about it in Missouri.
http://www.mosportsmen.com/moon.htm

Here's one of the places to order a chart.
http://www.lunarticsmooncard.com/howitworks.htm
 
The intent is for whitetails only. However, I do not know if anyone is putting mulie info in. I do know that I have very little input from the Western states so the amount of Mule deer info is probably little, if any. I agree that several people have written gobs and gobs about moon influence. However, I personally have never seen the actual numbers to support the research. I am not questioning their findings, as an engineer by trade, I like to see numbers to support theories. Also, its been my experience that when hunters see a deer that coincides with the moon predictors they tend to think the predictor was right. When they don't see a deer at the predicted time, they chalk it up to "oh well, must not have been in the right place". My intent is to determine deer movement due to moon influence, not to dtermine the timing of the rut. I think that during the rut, you can throw pretty much all common sense out the window. As far as moon influence on the rut, check out this research from MN
www.thehunterseye.com/trmichels

Anyway, I don't want anyone to think I am doubting someone elses research, but I am showing my numbers wihtout bias or financial interest.

Johnnie
 
Do you have any data on the quarters of the moon? Are sightings even higher then?

Do you have any research of Dr.Grant Woods?

In "Whitetail Wisdom", p40-44, publ.by the North Am.Hunting Club, 1998, Minnetonka, Minn., he wrote a short article summarizing some data he has somewhere and shows a plot where sightings double during desireable moon times, its like doubling your hunting days if you hunt during them compared to the bad moon times.

He gives some data there based on 422 hunts, 640 deer sightings, and 1,134 hours watching. We need his reference though to know what the good and bad days are though, these few pages don't say, they just refer you to these calendars for 2003 not this year?
http://www.kingsoutdoorcanada.com/cbroder/calendar.htm They have the good days coded on them supposedly, new next year.
 
All i know is that during the full moon time in Oct and Sept i get work done around the house because the hunting sucks for me. I save my weekends and vacation time for when there is as little moon as possible.
 
I know around here, you see game on most any eve about the same time all the time, but when the moon is new, they stay out in the fields longer in the morning.... :D
 
I haven't seen Dr. Grants research. Also, I have some data from the quarters, but not as much. Initially, it appears to be very similar to the new moon. I hope with additional input the findings don't change. Also, for those of you that may be going on trips. I have made a printable version that you can take with you. Use it for your own notes or whatever, just please input some data for me. It can be reached from a link at the top of the survey form page.

Johnnie

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 11-01-2002 07:27: Message edited by: Hunter71 ]</font>
 

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