How important is it to study moon phases and positioning when considering deer hunting? What phases would give you the best chan

[ImColty]

How important is it to study moon phases and positioning when considering deer hunting? What phases would give you the best chance to harvest a deer? and Where does overhead and underfoot fit into the discussion?

[Gary Devine]

I have had many cases when bucks came into my legal bait pile at midday during a full moon. My four trail cameras do not lie.

I posted a trail camera photo of a nice nine pointer on the F&S Trophy Room last fall. It was near noon time and during a full moon.

Maybe it is a "Jersey" thing but some Jersey bucks do move at noontime during a full moon. I bow hunt from ten in the morning to dusk during the full moon.

I was told by a Fish & Wildlife employee that the extra moon light makes it easy for deer to eat their fill early in the evening. They lie down and chew their cud during darkness. By noon time they get hungry again and head straight to their food source.

[wallofsam]

I too have pictures of nice bucks coming in between 11am & 1pm. Usually happens twice during the hunting season, and around the full moon. This happens here in Michigan. Although moon phase charts are fun to see how much truth there is to it, I have not found a lot of truth to them except for the full moon, noon feeding.

[FirstBubba]

Our deer season (gun) lasts 16 days! Waiting for a specific "moon phase" ain't a good ideer! I don't worry about moon, wind or weather. I just hunt!
If you waited for a calm day to hunt here, you'd be lucky to hunt one day a year! LOL!
Take an old fart's word, you kill deer by being in the woods. Sitting at home because all the conditions aren't what you prefer is just sour grapes. To heck with it, just get out there and hunt! You'll kill more deer that way!
Adapt your "methods" to the conditions.

[jhjimbo]

I have not seen the correlation to moon phases as much as weather fronts. Like FirstBubba, time in the woods = venison in the freezer.

[DEER30]

My considerations for the moon phases are nil. I hunt every chance I get.

However, during full moons or nearly full, the deer do tend to forage more during the night and return to bed very early. I set up earlier than usual and closer to bedding areas in hopes that it will be daylight before they make it to their beds. During this time, like others have said, the middle of the day can be a great time to hunt as the deer also may return to their feet for a mid day snack.

New moon phases typically see a little bit later in the morning action.

Rut, who cares about the moon. Like most males of other species, sex is all they care about!

Don't worry about the moon. Hunt every chance you get and you will increase the chances of your success. I usually stay in the stand during the early and late seasons until 10-11am and return 3-4 hrs before dark. I only consider hunting all day during the rut or pre-rut.

[Gary Devine]

I agree when the rut is on hunt any moon phase, any time and any weather.

[Treestand]

F&S has an APP for this on a I-Phone FREE!

Play the Wind in the RUT!

[DakotaMan]

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[DakotaMan]

Sorry all! As FirstBubba said, most of us only have a day or two when we can get out and many seasons are only one week long so such concerns are irrelevent. If I have time to deer hunt during the season, I get out there no matter what, especially during the rut. Big bucks seem to follow no rules at that time. You just need to be out there. In general, I have not witnessed much change in deer behavior with moon phases. When hunting pressure is on, they get very nocturnal no matter what the moon is doing.