Hi all,
Does anybody have any scientific or other evidence that fishing just after a full moon phase has any affect on fish feeding habits? It's been my personal experience that fishing after a full moon phase plays a big part in how successful I am that day. More times than not, fishing after a full moon, I can't get them to bite. This happens for me on the soft and hard decks. My belief is the full moon allows them to feed through the night. Also, I believe if a full moon can affect the sea tides, it can affect other water bodies as well which changes the patterns in fish feeding and habits etc. Ideas? Or am I just searching for reasons that my day of fishing sucked for reasons other than my own disconnects? Thanks!
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I agree that it seems to play a part in fish habbits. But then I am always looking for an excuse for poor fishing skills[:p]
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i belive it is true but not for all species, in my experince for trout is that i have caught them when it wasnt prime for em and i have not caught em when the conditions are supposed to be ideal. Being a perch nut ive noticed that the best perch fishing is usuallyright after a storm or front, i feel like they go lockjaw somewhat when theres high pressure. but thats just my input and im sure others could agree or disagree depending on there experiences.
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For whatever the reason, trout don't seem to be as effected by the full moon but for sure, it has an effect on warm water fish imo. The rule I have always heard is three days before and three days after, are not the best times to fish.
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On the flip side of the coin's other hand, Solunar tables list full moons as "BEST" times for fish and game.
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Hello everyone, Fished Strawberry for over 58 years and all my bad days at that Lake were during a full moon . Yesterday was one of them. Not sure if that makes a difference but the full MOON sure seems to effect Strawberry !!!
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The lunar phases are very interesting and are proven if all other conditions namely weather are optimum. These lunar phases can provide some outstanding fishing including hunting. There are basically 4 lunar times that we pay attention to; moon rise, moon overhead, moon set, and moon underfoot. The sun and moon movements align to major and minor time periods where feeding is likely to happen. An hour before to up to an hour after including the time right in the middle of the major and minor times can and we've seen produce some of the best and largest fish. Its well worth it to pay attention to the new moon, 1/4 moon and full moon schedules.
Now yes weather rising, falling, steady barometric pressure will impact along with other factors influence fishing something to be considered with what Mr. Knight found out many years ago through extensive research. Key is being on the water in areas you've caught or raised fish in the past.
If one cares to learn more here are some links that explain the so=sun lunar=moon (solunar) schedules.
[url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solunar_theory"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solunar_theory[/url]
[url "http://www.ezfshn.com/solunar/#SL"]http://www.ezfshn.com/solunar/#SL[/url]
Additionally there is an iPhone app called isolunar that is very good...yes I'm partial.
[url "http://www.i-solunar.com/i-Solunar-iPhone-App.php"]http://www.i-solunar.com/i-Solunar-iPhone-App.php[/url]
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A full moon definetely helps,at least it helps me see where I'm casting a good cast is important to catching fish
so being able to see where you cast at night is always a good thing
As for tides we had a full moon after Sandy and the combination of the two made for an extremely high tide,even saw Lobster crawling s.FL bay
First time I see this so one of the two must of made an impact or like I said the combination of Sandy and the moon made for something spectacular
saw lots of fish as well
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Night fishing under a full moon can be great. But during the day the fish become lethargic and not as interested in chasing a meal. I usually try a slower and deeper presentation to try and get these fish to bite.
But it is definetly more of a challenge during the day. However I have caught some of my biggest fish during a full moon. My theory is that the fish have been feeding all night and during the day the smaller fish are not hungry but with the slower retrieve and larger bait the big fish will not pass up an easy meal.
So my advice for what it is worth[
]. Larger bait and slower retrieve will get you the big fish during a full moon or you may get skunked. Either way you have a better chance of catching fish when you have a line in the water full moon or not! So go fishing and have fun...experiment with different techniques.
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Heres another video from S.FL in this video I show you the moon at the end of the video[
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[#005000]This is the first video and only video you may ever see of this species being caught at night and I have the moon to thank for that,hope you like,its a trolling video from Kayak the night before the blue moon[/#005000]
[#005000]So far I'm the only person in the world to have a documented VIDEO of this species being caught at night
check it out! PAULPRO!!!
[/#005000][#000000]Done this many times before when I was little but now that I got a portable camcorder thought I'd make a video on how to catch them at night,check for yourself there is no other video on the internet or youtube of this species caught at night..This video should change that I hope and maybe more guys will come out with their own videos[/#000000]
[#005000]Sorry I got off topic a bit but this is something nobody else has ever documented before.[/#005000]
HAHA in my excitement I drop the fish and gets away but you can see it when real it in[
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I always thought it was cause the Full Moon provides more light at night and fish can easily feed in the moon light.
So come the next day there not as active on a full stomach.
At Powell we fish with lights direct right at the water and you can see the fish chasing the light....
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I'll just say this. Nobody should ever bother even making the trip to Flaming Gorge for a week before and after a full moon. The fish don't bite well at all. It shuts them down. They all feed at night, and don't eat in the day time. Only fish the other two weeks.
Same goes for the rivers in Wyoming too. Avoid them during moon periods.
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Trout feed at night whether there is a full moon or not. I have fished Strawberry at night from my boat and caught them all night long. Whether there was just a sliver of a moon or a full moon it didn't make any difference.
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But were they feeding on top?
I think a full moon does effect the catching. I don't know if it completely shuts off or you have different HOT times of the day. I am sure fish will eat 24/7, but they need a little break in between.
Try fishing an hour or two later.
I would think bottom feeders would be less effected. I know the Carp fishing is the same full moon or not.
There is hatches all day long in the cooler months, so I don't know if Fall / Winter full moons are as detrimental as Spring / Summer.
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[quote flygoddess]
But were they feeding on top?
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I don't recall whether they were or not, but they were feeding plenty on whole minnows (what I was fishing with at the time) that were cast out and allowed to slowly drift down weightless.
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Well, I just did completed a test of the full moon at strawberry and it was hot fishing. My buddy and I fly fished at East Portal on Tuesday afternoon and evening (full moon) - hot fishing - and I fished there Wednesday morning - hot fishing - and later in the afternoon - again hot fishing. Just on Wednesday alone I caught 42 fish from my kick boat. It does not get much better than that there. Some of the other kick boats also reported good fishing. I thought for sure that Wednesday morning, after the full moon, would be dead. I just can't figure it out. If they did feed all night long, they were still pigs the next morning.
Just a side note: I caught a big rainbow on a sand tube jig and a bigger cutt came along right at my kick boat and tried to rip the tube jig out of the rainbow's mouth. The rainbow went nuts and it almost pulled the pole out of my hands. Very cool to watch.
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Thank you all for your input, this is a great discussion which has proved to me that there may be some truth to my suspicions about fishing around a full moon. Most of my experiences are coming from fishing Strawberry. I hate to make the drive all the way up from Davis County dragging a boat etc. to fish around a full moon cycle cause I always tend to have lesser luck than usual. We may head up there Saturday and we'll be just coming off of a full moon cycle which scares me a bit hoping we have some decent luck, I'll post our results after...
Again, thanks all, this has been good reading!
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I will also be fishing in Saturday and dragging my boat from Davis County. If we don't catch plenty of fish I don't think the moon will be the problem.
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[quote chinook]Well, I just did completed a test of the full moon at strawberry and it was hot fishing. My buddy and I fly fished at East Portal on Tuesday afternoon and evening (full moon) - hot fishing - and I fished there Wednesday morning - hot fishing - and later in the afternoon - again hot fishing. Just on Wednesday alone I caught 42 fish from my kick boat. It does not get much better than that there. Some of the other kick boats also reported good fishing. I thought for sure that Wednesday morning, after the full moon, would be dead. I just can't figure it out. If they did feed all night long, they were still pigs the next morning.
Just a side note: I caught a big rainbow on a sand tube jig and a bigger cutt came along right at my kick boat and tried to rip the tube jig out of the rainbow's mouth. The rainbow went nuts and it almost pulled the pole out of my hands. Very cool to watch.[/quote]
Not sure there is much bug action this time of year in the evening up there. Pretty cold. So, not sure what they would be feeding on other than other fish and Crayfish. That is why I think time of year matters. In the warmer months there will be hatches.
Now, this Sand Tube Jig...what kind of fly is that?[
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Pole?????[laugh][cool]
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One theory I've heard is that bugs normally migrate at night when it's dark. So when the moon is full, the bugs don't move. So thus - the fish don't get that feeding opportunity.
But I've also heard all the negatives about full-moon fishing. Over the summer I had some great days on the river after a full moon. Crappie and Bass were in frisky mode.
But so many factors, so much water, so few fish - who knows. As said - ain't gonna catch 'em if you don't try.
In-Fisherman puts out calendars of the "best" days/times to fish. But they don't bait my jigs, so what can I say.