All living things on earth are affected by the moon, from the smallest organisms (plant and animal) all the way up the life-chain to man. You have probably observed the effects of the moon and were not aware of it. As an outdoorsman, you most likely have seen herds of cattle, idly curled up on the ground, rise simultaneously and begin moving around and feeding, giving rise to the expression, "the fish are biting when the cows are grazing." It has been noted that during periods when cattle are inactive, squirrels are also hiding quietly in the hollows of trees, deer won't even flick a fly and other wildlife is almost totally inactive. Then, twice each day, as if on the stroke of nature's clock, these creatures become active.
This activity is all sparked by the moon's gravitational influence on the earth. The two times of increased activity each day are referred to as the excellent periods. The excellent periods occur when the moon is directly overhead (moon up) and directly beneath (moon down) the point on earth where you are located. At this time the moon is exerting its strongest gravitational pull on the earth's surface, causing the high tides. During the excellent periods, which last approximately 2 hours, fish and game are the most active, moving and feeding. It is now that the fisherman has the best chance to entice a strike and the hunter is most likely to sight game. Exactly in between the two excellent periods are the good periods. The good periods, which last approximately 1 and a half hours, are often the times of the lowest tides. Probably for the same reason that people eat lunch between breakfast and supper, and the midnight snack occurs between supper and breakfast, game and fish also feed during these between periods. That is to say, that if fish and game are going to feed outside the excellent periods, they will most assuredly do so during the good periods. |
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