#3063304 - 12/04/12 03:27 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: Winchester]
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pcrc
8 Point
Registered: 10/12/09
Posts: 1120
Loc: Knoxville
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If I could hunt in my backyard all season long I might pay attention to the moon, but when all my hunting takes place 1-2 hrs from the house and is basically scheduled ahead of time anyway, I just stopped worrying about it. Maybe it's just coincidence but I have seen more deer this year when I stopped worrying about the moon.
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#3063308 - 12/04/12 03:31 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: BSK]
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TNDeerGuy
10 Point
Registered: 11/28/06
Posts: 4469
Loc: Old Hickory/Mt.Juliet, TN
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I have been wondering if daylight buck activity is better on mornings and/or evenings when the moon is up versus mornings and evenings when the moon is down. I just finished analyzing 25 1/2 years of hunter observation data, looking at mornings when the moon is still up (waning moon [getting less full]) at sunrise versus mornings when the moon is not up at sunrise (waxing moon [getting more full]). In addition, I looked at evening hunts when the moon is up versus when it isn't at sunset (just the opposite of mornings, the moon is down at sunset when the moon is waning, and up at sunset when the moon is waxing).
I expected to see some sort of consistent difference (better when the moon is up or when the moon is down, both morning and evenings). I did not find that. In fact, all I found is that daylight buck sightings are higher in both mornings and evenings when the moon is waning (getting less full).
However, I did find one interesting pattern. The difference between waning and waxing moon morning hunts, as well as waning and waxing afternoon hunts is greatest the closer the moon is to being full. In essence, morning hunts when the moon is waning are generally better than morning hunts when the moon is waxing, however, the difference between the two is much greater nearer the full moon (waning just off the full moon versus waxing towards a nearly full moon). The same was true of evening hunts.
Wonder why?
My brother-in-law noticed the same thing when he had to do a long-term study for his biology degree—waning just after the full moon had a slight spike. I would be interested to see if there is more to it than that. Ever thought about getting some temperature/pressure data from those dates and see if there is a correlation there?
_________________________
Rammer Jammer, Yellow Hammer—Give'em Hell Alabama! Roll Tide!
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#3063316 - 12/04/12 03:36 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: pcrc]
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log72
Spike
Registered: 11/15/12
Posts: 48
Loc: Milan, TN
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I much rather play the weather. Wether it be fish or deer, both seem most active several hours before an approaching cold front & again just as the front is passing(rain stops, wind & temp changes, etc).
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#3063321 - 12/04/12 03:38 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: pcrc]
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FatTire
Spike
Registered: 02/25/12
Posts: 21
Loc: N. Alabama
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I hunt large agriculture fields during 75% of my sits. I can say with out a doubt when the moon is rising the movement is much stronger. My sightings are 3 to 4 times as strong. Slow days for me are 8-10 deer sightings per sit. On a great day I can see 30 to 40 per sit. I can also say that I see my best bucks on the quarters as the moon is rising. The full moon and new moon are one in the same based on my records. Movement is poor unless you are looking at the one full moon phase per year that in my opinion sets bucks on their feet and the search begins for the first estrous doe, heavy scraping begins, and based on my observations many of my bucks shift into there breeding areas. For me in north alabama that moon was the 28th of Nov. We are now seeing our regulars on the cameras disapear and are being replaced by deer that others were getting pics of in summer or early fall. Scraping is now heavy and the 2yr olds are bumping does. By the 11th of Dec the moon will be rising about daybreak and I expect us to be in full swing on the chase phase. The 11th 12th, and 13th and 14th will be hot with the moon phase being what it is the chase phase turning on.
Edited by FatTire (12/04/12 03:44 PM)
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#3063324 - 12/04/12 03:41 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: woodsman87]
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RiverBuck10
8 Point
Registered: 11/25/09
Posts: 1051
Loc: Hamilton, Co TN
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I aint got a clue. I just hunt! haha
X2 but thanks for the info!! I just wake up and ask myself,,, Hunt or not to hunt??
_________________________
Blessing,
RiverBuck
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#3063325 - 12/04/12 03:41 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: pcrc]
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BSK
Jerkasourous of the non-typical kind
Non-Typical
Registered: 03/11/99
Posts: 59548
Loc: Nashville, TN
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I definitely don't use moon conditions to decide when to hunt. I just find the numbers and patterns interesting in trying to figure deer out.
Now I definitely use the date (stage of the rut) to schedule my hunting. And on occassion, I will use the weather to alter days I plan to hunt. But I don't change my hunting plans because of the moon.
_________________________
"Know where you stand, and stand there" --Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan
"There is no reasoning someone out of a position he has not reasoned himself into." --Clive James
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#3063330 - 12/04/12 03:44 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: TNDeerGuy]
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BSK
Jerkasourous of the non-typical kind
Non-Typical
Registered: 03/11/99
Posts: 59548
Loc: Nashville, TN
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My brother-in-law noticed the same thing when he had to do a long-term study for his biology degree—waning just after the full moon had a slight spike. I would be interested to see if there is more to it than that. Ever thought about getting some temperature/pressure data from those dates and see if there is a correlation there?
Very interesting that he saw a similar pattern. I doubt weather is a player in my data, as data has been collected over so many years that just about every weather condition falls into every moon category. I just wonder why that spike just after the full moon? I bet it has something to do with moon rise or set, but I can't see it yet.
_________________________
"Know where you stand, and stand there" --Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan
"There is no reasoning someone out of a position he has not reasoned himself into." --Clive James
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#3063332 - 12/04/12 03:46 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: BSK]
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log72
Spike
Registered: 11/15/12
Posts: 48
Loc: Milan, TN
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BSK what do you think the correlation to the waning moon & buck sightings is in reality?
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#3063333 - 12/04/12 03:46 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: Winchester]
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BSK
Jerkasourous of the non-typical kind
Non-Typical
Registered: 03/11/99
Posts: 59548
Loc: Nashville, TN
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I couldn't agree more Winchester. Weather is a much bigger player than moon conditions. But I did find that data interesting...
I agree BSK it is interesting, but do you think the next 25 yrs data would coincide with the previous 25 on moon data? Reason I ask is it seems every moon study ever done has had somewhat different results?
I'll let you know in 25 years (if I'm still alive)!
Actually, I bet my data is fairly tightly linked to the location, in that, the data might be very different for a different property/habitat/region.
I have seen where morning versus evening hunt results are VERY influenced by habitat. Big woods and acorn-feeding deer show a strong relationship to better morning hunting. But open ground and agriculture bring out a strong evening bias.
_________________________
"Know where you stand, and stand there" --Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan
"There is no reasoning someone out of a position he has not reasoned himself into." --Clive James
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#3063335 - 12/04/12 03:47 PM
Re: Moon up versus moon down
[Re: log72]
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BSK
Jerkasourous of the non-typical kind
Non-Typical
Registered: 03/11/99
Posts: 59548
Loc: Nashville, TN
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BSK what do you think the correlation to the waning moon & buck sightings is in reality?
I honestly have no idea. It's just a pattern I've noticed. Why it occurs is a mystery.
_________________________
"Know where you stand, and stand there" --Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan
"There is no reasoning someone out of a position he has not reasoned himself into." --Clive James
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