full moon

[69Viking]

Full moon sucked in Northern Conecuh County Alabama.  Sat Friday afternoon, all day Saturday, and Sunday morning and not a single deer.  Saw plenty of Turkeys, Racoons, an Armadillo, a Opossum, and 50 million damn tree rats!  Changed my location from a bedding area trail to food plots and no difference, the deer just weren't moving.  Even the cameras didn't pick up any deer pics Friday and Saturday night.  Usually I get pics at night at least.  I think I'll hold off on my next trip until January and the rut is kicking in.  I have a doe from last weekend so there's already meat in the freezer at least!

[8uck5nort]

Full moon was Friday. I burned my last vacation day and sat and saw nothing. Saturday the weather was decent until 11 am or so and the wind and rain started creeping in.
 
Saturday around 10 am I finished up my season with a button buck with a 20 - 25 yard shot with a bow.
 
That was the only deer I had seen in the last 3 outings. (Prior Sunday, Friday and Saturday)
 
Good luck to the both of you.

[Demoderby4]

Full moon was on saturday, had some good action, me and my buddy saw a few deer moving each, i took a shot but missed, he was about to shoot but my shot startled him as we were about only 100 yards aprt overlooking different sections and he jumped some and the deer kinda spooked, i felt bad :/ but full moons are typically a good omen for me.

[bushwacker]

I hunt the full moon from 10 am till 2 pm and hunt as close to the bedding area as possible without spooking them. During the rut moon, the bucks are usually in the seeking phase and a few are in the chase phase. So I try to find scrapes near bedding areas. Hope this helps.

[bwhntr]

I have also wondered about the moon and its effect on whitetail movement. I am running 2 digital camera right now. A Cuddeback and a Leaf River. I am not checking them but one month at a time. I am also keeping a log of the daily weather, clear, overcast, rain, etc. Along with daily readings on the barometer in the camera area. Although, for the most part, human activity during hunting season, I think plays another major part in their movement. I will keep posted what I find.

[bwhntr]

 
I have began my own study of the whitetail rut, by using trail cameras. I do not not whether or not the moon does play a part in this. I am going to use the trail cameras to let me know when the fawns show up in the area that I hunt. So far I have a few pics., and by using the day and month stamped on the camera pictures, I count back the days from the times that the little ones begin showing up. Doesn't give me the exact day, but gets me within a few days of the does estrus, which from what I have read is the rut itself. I will continue to monitor our deer herd, which I think is what it is all about anyway, to determine the rut in my area. Also, from what I have read, the rut can vary within just a few miles. Does the moon determine the rut? I don't know, but I have always heard that a picture is worth a thousand words, therefore that is why I am using the cameras.

[DeanoZ]

Based on all the study's I've read thus far (about 3) the Moon Phase appears to be less of a factor than was previously thought.  I'm certain others will beg to differ, just passing on what's out there.

[buckhunter21]

This has been a big discussion in other parts of this forum.  Some think the moon plays a big part, some think that it doesn't.  If you know of CA (Charles Alsheimer) you'll know that he believes the moon plays a significant part in the rut.  He stands behind the second full moon after the autumn equinox as the start time for the rut.  This can vary w/in two or three weeks every year.  I didn't see much last year to back-up that stance, but have to say that was the first year that it has happ.  I'm a believer in his theory.  Some other guys and gals on here aren't. 

[hunt4ever]

Just to add a few comments to Buckhunter21 comments, I am also a believer in Charles Alsheimer's (CA) theory and have been following his 13+ year study with Vermont's Dept. of Wildlife Commissioner Wayne Laroche.  This study deals with how both sunlight and moonlight influence the whitetail rut timing. For those not familiar with this study, see D&DH "Special Pre-rut Issue", September 2009.  As indicated in other posts, I know there are people out there that don't believe in this theory.  His theory may not be correct, but IMO it is better explains the reason why the peak rut shifts in a 2-3 week period each year.  It makes a lot more sense than what I heard growing up in Maine: "Boy this cold weather will bring on the rut".  Of course, I was not smart enough to ask: Don't bucks go into rut down South

I have or have read most of CA's books and for more than 10 years have read his articles in D&DH mag as a Contributing Editor on deer behavior.  I like CA because he writes from a prospective of someone that grew up and has lived 50+ years in the North (Western NY).  A couple of years ago, I had the privilege of spending a Whitetail Weekend @ NorthCountry Whitetails with CA.  As part of this weekend, he took us for a tour of his 30 area whitetail research facility which he has been operating for the past 20 years or so.  Most of the photos that are included in his articles in D&DH mag and many other sports mag were taken @ his facility.  His facility is fully enclosed with a stream running thou it, a few fields/food plots, plenty of woods and thickets, and lots of natural habitat.  The deer really don't know they are enclosed and lead a pretty normal whitetail life other than they come out of the woods once a day for some special high protein feed.  Of course, they have a better diet than those in the wild.  All the deer, about 12, were born in the "wild" within the facility and grow up there.  At that time, I think he had a couple of deer that were more than 12 years old. The deer were really beautiful; therefore, I am attaching a few photos.  Thanks, [size="4"]Tom Mac[/size]


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