# Better Hunting? Full Moon or No Moon



## mpschore (Feb 18, 2009)

Ok guys so I'm not into the lunar calender all that much but had a question for you.

Is it better to hunt on a full moon or no moon night?

My thought goes like this. Deer during a full moon will go nocturnal because they can see just like during the day. Whereas deer during a no moon can't see all night and therefore will be moving around in the day much more.

Is my assumption correct?


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## Sagittarius (May 22, 2002)

That has been my experience.
My hunting partners and I never see any deer during a Full Moon. :thumbs_do


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## Flydown (Oct 6, 2009)

Give me a waning or waxing full moon rising in the afternoon for PM hunts. 

Or a quarter moon underfoot or overhead for morning hunts. :thumbs_up


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## pybowhtr (Nov 17, 2009)

Full moon usually means low deer movement during daylight. They are busy at night. I would still not miss a hunt over the moon phase. Good hunting.


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## weave (Oct 17, 2002)

No moon


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## sgspencer (Oct 19, 2009)

My dad, a retired wildlife biologist, always told me their data for spotlight counts showed no statistical difference on their night counts on new versus full moon nights. 

My best buck, a 155 classer came the 3rd morning after a full moon, on a windy day, downwind of me, and I was wearing insect repellent. I used to worry about the moon and weather, but just decided to just hunt whenever I could! The only weather condition I truly look for is right after a slow moving rainy front the night before, especially if it breaks just before morning. Deer will be moving then, I guarantee it.


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## WhitetailChaser (Feb 15, 2006)

Both full and new moons produce more middle of the day sightings for me. For better early and late sightings, I prefer a first or last quarter.


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## buckeye_girl (Nov 1, 2008)

I was always told hunting was never good during full moons. Was told the deer don't move as much.


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## joffutt1 (Mar 23, 2008)

Full moon never helps but i thought they just moved later in the day since they were moving more at night. Either way, you can't kill'em from the couch. You gotta be in the stand to have a chance at being lucky.


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## 0zarks2 (Feb 9, 2007)

joffutt1 said:


> Full moon never helps but i thought *they just moved later in the day since they were moving more at night*. Either way, you can't kill'em from the couch. You gotta be in the stand to have a chance at being lucky.


That's always been my experience. It just seems like I don't see anything till later in the am on the full moons.


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## zyxw (Feb 19, 2007)

I have killed some good bucks during the full moon periods but it always seems to be just a little harder with fewer sightings during the full moon. I prefer to hunt after dark nights but come the last week of October I am hunting every day for the next 5 weeks no matter what the moon phase. Only thing that keeps me out of the woods is heavy rain. A guy once told me hunting in the rain was for those who had never killed a deer. lol. I kind of agree with that as I've gotten older:smile:


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## HuntWhenever (Jan 4, 2010)

sgspencer said:


> ... but just decided to just *hunt whenever* I could!


Yea...that's sort of my philosophy too.


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## athomPT (Dec 14, 2008)

my experience has been NO DEER during the full moon. They party all night and sleep all day!!!


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## fletched (May 10, 2006)

sgspencer said:


> My dad, a retired wildlife biologist, always told me their data for spotlight counts showed no statistical difference on their night counts on new versus full moon nights.
> 
> My best buck, a 155 classer came the 3rd morning after a full moon, on a windy day, downwind of me, and I was wearing insect repellent. I used to worry about the moon and weather, but just decided to just hunt whenever I could! The only weather condition I truly look for is right after a slow moving rainy front the night before, especially if it breaks just before morning. Deer will be moving then, I guarantee it.





WhitetailChaser said:


> Both full and new moons produce more middle of the day sightings for me. For better early and late sightings, I prefer a first or last quarter.


Two very good and accuate post. A deer does not need the moonlight to see at night. They can see perfectly fine without the moon. If the moon is full, I get to the stand later in the morning. I have killed several bucks between 10 and 11 oclock. I like the quarter moon the best. The moon is on a 28 day cycle. Start with a new moon, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the evening. It will look like this ), 7 days later you will have a full moon. It will look like this O, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the morning. It will look like this (. 7 days later you will have the new moon. It can't be seen. Quarter moon in the evening fits your right hand and quarter moon in the morning fits your left hand. A full moon will always peak around midnight. Quater moon will always peak around dusk and dawn. Even though the moon looks like it travels from east to west, it actually travels from west to east. The earth is spinning faster than the moon is moving making it appear to travel east to west. I have killed deer when the moon is in all different positions. The moon may influence a deer but eating and rutting does too. When you have a new moon near rut, it makes the day appear shorter since it gets totally dark as soon as the sun goes down. This can bring the deer in full rut since the rut is triggered by decreasing daylight. If you see a full moon with a line down through the middle, it means someone has stuck their butt out of the car window and isn't useful for deer hunting. :mg:


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## Wbuffetjr1 (Oct 3, 2006)

fletched said:


> Two very good and accuate post. A deer does not need the moonlight to see at night. They can see perfectly fine without the moon. If the moon is full, I get to the stand later in the morning. I have killed several bucks between 10 and 11 oclock. I like the quarter moon the best. The moon is on a 28 day cycle. Start with a new moon, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the evening. It will look like this ), 7 days later you will have a full moon. It will look like this O, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the morning. It will look like this (. 7 days later you will have the new moon. It can't be seen. Quarter moon in the evening fits your right hand and quarter moon in the morning fits your left hand. A full moon will always peak around midnight. Quater moon will always peak around dusk and dawn. Even though the moon looks like it travels from east to west, it actually travels from west to east. The earth is spinning faster than the moon is moving making it appear to travel east to west. I have killed deer when the moon is in all different positions. The moon may influence a deer but eating and rutting does too. When you have a new moon near rut, it makes the day appear shorter since it gets totally dark as soon as the sun goes down. This can bring the deer in full rut since the rut is triggered by decreasing daylight. If you see a full moon with a line down through the middle, it means someone has stuck their butt out of the car window and isn't useful for deer hunting. :mg:


great post


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## ImpalaSSpeed96 (Sep 27, 2006)

I can't stand hunting a full moon... Won't buy into what anyone says anymore. I've hunted to much under a full moon for it not to be coincidence. Not saying why it is, just saying I do not see movement during daylight hours under a full moon.


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## bwlacy (Mar 28, 2009)

Deer have to eat every few hours, it's the way they are built. I've seen lot's of deer between 10 and 2 during a full moon. They stay in the woods and thickets, but they do get up and eat and move around during mid day. 

Now when the rut gets cranked up from 10 to 2 is also a great time to catch bucks trolling downwind of known doe bedding areas.

Hunt whenever you can, it doesn't have to be morning and evening. I do hunt those times also. From Halloween to November 15 I hunt all day if I can.


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## ImpalaSSpeed96 (Sep 27, 2006)

bwlacy said:


> Hunt whenever you can, it doesn't have to be morning and evening. I do hunt those times also. From Halloween to November 15 I hunt all day if I can.


Since getting more serious about arrowing a big buck the last 3 or 4 years, we have started hunting more all day sits. Almost all of our big buck movement is caught between 11-2.... And to think, I never used to hunt past 10...ukey:


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## Whiskey Creek (Jun 13, 2009)

fletched said:


> Two very good and accuate post. A deer does not need the moonlight to see at night. They can see perfectly fine without the moon. If the moon is full, I get to the stand later in the morning. I have killed several bucks between 10 and 11 oclock. I like the quarter moon the best. The moon is on a 28 day cycle. Start with a new moon, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the evening. It will look like this ), 7 days later you will have a full moon. It will look like this O, 7 days later you will have a quarter moon in the morning. It will look like this (. 7 days later you will have the new moon. It can't be seen. Quarter moon in the evening fits your right hand and quarter moon in the morning fits your left hand. A full moon will always peak around midnight. Quater moon will always peak around dusk and dawn. Even though the moon looks like it travels from east to west, it actually travels from west to east. The earth is spinning faster than the moon is moving making it appear to travel east to west. I have killed deer when the moon is in all different positions. The moon may influence a deer but eating and rutting does too. When you have a new moon near rut, it makes the day appear shorter since it gets totally dark as soon as the sun goes down. This can bring the deer in full rut since the rut is triggered by decreasing daylight. If you see a full moon with a line down through the middle, it means someone has stuck their butt out of the car window and isn't useful for deer hunting. :mg:


Finally a good post about the moon. Guys let me repeat, DEER CAN SEE JUST FINE IN THE DARK, full moon activity at midnight is not caused by better their being able to see better, their activity is caused by the moon being directly overhead. Go out at midnight on a dark moon, I bet just as many deer are in the fields, you'll just need a light to see them. First rule, is hunt whenever you can. Second rule is keep track of when you see lots of deer movement, then think about where the moon is (overhead/underfoot) I bet you will notice a significant correlation between high deer movement and the moon being overhead or underfoot (exact opposite side of the earth). Third rule is when their rutting, you better be in stand, moon or no moon.


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## [email protected] (Jan 17, 2005)

I notice no diff between new and full moon periods. Bottom line is that during each of these periods mid-day hunting is productive. And that includes when it's hot if you plan your stand location accordingly.


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## Liv4Rut (Mar 24, 2006)

During college, I used to shine the spotlight every night for 5 years from growing to losing antlers. It is legal in Iowa as long as you don't have any weapons. During full moon nights, you won't see much for deer activity. On no moon nights, you will see deer everywhere. From my experience, it is very counter intuitive to what you would think. Hunting wise I am indifferent. I am hunting regardless and have shot deer during each phase.


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## pabowhuntsman (Dec 11, 2006)

I'd have to say "no moon" as well and judging by the calendar this year, it looks pretty good for the last 2 weeks of archery season here in PA. (last quarter to first quarter on the last day!) :shade:


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## Rich-VA (Dec 19, 2009)

My experienced has been during a full moon (and no moon) I see movement right at dusk and dawn and then again at mid day. The reason most people don't see a lot of deer when they move mid day is because they are out eating lunch or taking a nooner.


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## Atheist (Feb 21, 2008)

I always hate full moon, never see any dang deer! I have the same reasoning as you do, they seem to go nocturnal.


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## jclaws1 (Mar 13, 2010)

of the 4 bucks i shot last year 2 were on the exact day of the first quarter moon,and one was shot on exactly the last quarter moon.the 4th was shot the day before the new moon.

but i have always seen alot of deer activity between 10 and 2 during a full moon.


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## 2005Ultramag (Apr 3, 2005)

pybowhtr said:


> Full moon usually means low deer movement during daylight. They are busy at night. I would still not miss a hunt over the moon phase. Good hunting.


Agreed. I would never say to myself; "well I have the day off, nothing else to do, but it was a full moon last night so hunting is out of the question".

I killed my first archery deer at 11:30am after all my buddies had left the woods.:shade:

Deer are about 75% predictable. That other 25% say anything can happen at any time in the woods. I like to be there when it does.


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## Grizz1219 (Nov 19, 2009)

fletched; If you see a full moon with a line down through the middle said:


> This line killed me... I actually laughed out loud on this one!!


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## jkm97 (Jul 8, 2004)

I see fewer deer during a full moon, but I still see and kill deer during this phase. It is a great time to get in some midday hunting though, as they do tend to move a bit more from 10-2 than normal in my experience.


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

no rut
full moon hunt 10-4 (mid day)
no moon hunt mornings and evenings

rut
who cares where the moon is SIT IN YOUR STAND


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## Dredly (May 10, 2005)

Full moon... in the woods and set by 15 - 20 minutes before legal hunting, out of the woods around 12 - 1

No Moon... in the woods and set by 15 - 20 minutes before legal hunting, out of the woods around 12 - 1



shooting deer is a very small part of the hunting experience, especially for me as an archer. I have a TON of time in the woods, I don't need to shoot a deer every time out, but there isn't much that beats getting out there in the AM and sitting quietly and watching the woods go to bed and come alive 


That being said I've shot more deer between 10 - 6 then I have before 7 or after 6... deer don't sleep all day long


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## Karbon (Jul 5, 2006)

I hunt when I can, but I prefer no moon...


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## buckwrangler (Aug 10, 2010)

The influence of the moon's phase and resulting light (which can be blocked by cloud cover) is insignificant compared to the influence of the moon's gravity when it comes to planning successful hunts. The moon's POSITION relative to the observer is the key, not the phase. By careful calculation of moon position relative to sunrise/sunset times at your exact geographic location, you can get a really good idea of not only when to hunt, but also WHERE to hunt. Deer frequent three main habitats: feeding areas, bedding areas, and the transition corridors in between. The moon's gravity has a strong influence on when they are most likely to be in these areas.

Use Google to search for HuntByMoon.com and learn more. The website calculates for any day, and any U.S. or Canadian location.


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## turkeyhunter60 (Apr 19, 2010)

*Full moon or no moon!!!*

Absolutely no moon!!!:elf_moon::moon::darkbeer:


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## mn5503 (Feb 21, 2006)

I was told werewolves came out with the full.


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