Hunting by the Moon.....


toddyboman

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A buddy and I was discussing this topic so I dug out a book I have and began to re-read.

Here is the book.

book_white.jpg

http://www.charliealsheimer.com/ca/book_moon.html

Now based on what I read and by reviewing a calendar with the moon phases on it here is what I came up with.....

moonphase2008.jpg

Of course I know other things will factor......Hunting pressure, weather, buck to doe ratio....

But we are going to try and follow and note what we see the determine how accurate it is...

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According to the Peterson's Bowhunting article: By The Light Of The Moon,

http://www.bowhuntingmag.com/tactics/BW100404BT3/index1.html

It states that the rutting moon is (the second full moon after fall equinox), if that is the case with the fall equinox being on Sep. 22, 2008, the second full moon would then fall on November 13th, 2008, which concurs with your chart...nice work, it will be interesting to see how the pattern takes shape.

~Van

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While I hunt whenever I can regardless of the moon phases, this is pretty interesting.

According to what you have there the peak of the pre rut(10 days prior to breeding season start) will be the day our ml season closes, after which archery opens back up. Will try to pay attention and note activity Todd. I used to keep a journal, but have not kept up with it the past few years, will have to try and remember to come back to this thread too.

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While I hunt whenever I can regardless of the moon phases, this is pretty interesting.

Yes it is interesting...and thanks.

When I lived in Florida I had one of those Moon Dials/Wheels that showed the best times to hunt and where.

I have to admit it I did not see deer all the time but when I did it was within 1/2 hr either way of the scheduled time the wheel said it would be.

Now I just hunt when I can for as long as I can;)

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While I hunt whenever I can regardless of the moon phases, this is pretty interesting.

ME TOO!! If I have a chance to hit the woods I do. I will never kill ol Monster Buck from my couch/bed/recliner so if I can get out I do. ;)

According to what you have there the peak of the pre rut(10 days prior to breeding season start) will be the day our ml season closes, after which archery opens back up. Will try to pay attention and note activity Todd. I used to keep a journal, but have not kept up with it the past few years, will have to try and remember to come back to this thread too.

Sounds good....I too will try to come back to this thread and update with what I am observing.;):cool:

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If he's right my Kansas hunt dates are perfect. I'll be bowhunting there 11/16-11/22.

Unfortunately that chart doesn't work for MS. We have a late December rut here with a mean breeding date around Jan. 1st and 2nd where our place is in MS. I do understand according to his research our breeding dates are supposed to be determined by the 3rd full moon after the fall equinox but it just doesn't work out that way. MS is just plain weird. How weird is it? :confused: Check it out for yourself from this mean breeding date map I got off the MS wildlife department's web site.

MS_Breeding_date_range.JPG

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Unfortunately that chart doesn't work for MS. We have a late December rut here with a mean breeding date around Jan. 1st and 2nd where our place is in MS. I do understand according to his research our breeding dates are supposed to be determined by the 3rd full moon after the fall equinox but it just doesn't work out that way. MS is just plain weird. How weird is it? :confused: Check it out for yourself from this mean breeding date map I got off the MS wildlife department's web site.

You aren't kidding Al... I commonly say that we hunt the rut from Dec 15 until season goes out on Jan 31. I find that the best bet here is from Dec 20 until Jan 5, but our rut is just plain crazy.

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  • 3 weeks later...

One thing that will be very consistent is the rut in your area from year to year. Here in northwest Montana the best time to be in the woods if looking to take a big buck is from Nov. 5th through the 20th. The week surrounding the rising full moon is tops for afternoon stands and the deer will move early. After the 20th of Nov. the big bucks are usually with a receptive doe and not moving nearly as much, but are easier to hunt if still hunting or tracking. Weather conditions can have a huge affect on the whole issue but hunting the rising moon in the afternoon should still bring about some action and if the hunting pressure is high the action will be mainly in the last half hour of shooting light. Those of you in the South should see the same deer movements just a month or two latter. Hunt when you can and if it is in peak deer movement that is just a bonus.

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I have been using a Moon Dial for about three years now. I always hunt when I can, but have noticed that the activity times are pretty close if the weather isn't crazy. Once the rut starts all bets are off of course because the does are moving as fast as they can away from the bucks and the bucks are moving as fast as they can toward all does. :) I have gotten to the point where I know when and where the deer will be moving in my area now so I haven't even bought a dial for this year. My friends are amazed at how accurate I can get. I just tell them it's because I have spent many deerless hours in the woods figuring it out. It has all paid off though.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I am very interested in this also, especially this year. When we had the most recent full moon in mid october there was a lot of action I thought, I was seeing chasing and scrapes way earlier then usually.....that is usually a time when there is the "october lull".

Right now I would actually compare the last week or so here to the "october lull". Normally things around here would be getting crazy but it isnt the case quite yet and I'm hearing this from a lot of people. I've also noticed a lot of scrapes that are normally red hot by this time aren't getting hit at all. It's almost like there was a mini rut with the last full moon, now there is a little lull and I'm interested to see what happens as we get closer to the next full moon. It's definately not the same as it was last year.

I've been playing pretty close attention to moon phases and activity the last couple years and I've become a believer in a lot of this moon theory stuff that's been talked about for years. In my opinion it has an incredible influence on deer behavior. I'm interested to see what the responses are going to be here in this thread over the next few weeks.

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Sounded like it was a pretty good weekend around us for the ml this weekend here Todd, but all we saw on our property over the weekend here was does and fawns. Pics we are getting indicate bucks are mostly nocturnal and still getting some regulars coming around, did hear what sounded like a pretty intense fight down near the river before it got light Saturday morning and have been seeing some young bucks trying to chase. Guess I probably need to update my journal again.:o:eek::p

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Well I have noticed a few more scrapes and big rubs popping up......

Pictures from my trail camera indicate lots of night time movement. I am sure that is due to the extremely warm temps we are having. Day time temps are low to mid 70s.:eek:

I have not seen much chasing activity yet.....and only heard of a little from others in my area and those where by little bucks.....

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Charlie is from Western NY near Bath. He is very smart and observant:cool: Bonus: he usually is correct:D

Last Sat (Nov 1st) i witnessed two seperate bucks roaming the property and they were not looking for food, in fact one was visiting every scrape and rub. The does were acting crazy as well.

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