Florida Fish Busters August 2006 WHAT IS THE SOLUNAR THEORY ABOUT, AND HOW CAN YOU USE

IT TO IMPROVE YOUR CATCH? By: Bob Wattendorf, Biologist, Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Whens the best time to go freshwater fishing in Florida? For me, its whenever I get that always-too-rare opportunity. However, if your schedule provides some flexibility, and you want to be a bit more scientific about it, there are some other factors to consider. Many fish and game activity calendars shown on television news shows, reprinted in newspapers, made into calendars or provided electronically on select Web sites, GPS receivers, fish finders or even sports watches, are based on the Solunar Theory. Credit for this theory goes to John Alden Knight, author of "Moon Up . . . Moon Down", "The Modern Angler: Including the Solunar Theory" and "The Theory and Technique of Fresh Water Angling." In 1926, Knight considered some folklore he picked up while fishing in Florida and decided to evaluate 33 factors that might influence behavior of fresh or saltwater fishes and cause them to be periodically more active. Three of them seemed to merit further examination: sunrise/sunset, the phase of the moon and tides. From that effort, this avid fly fisherman created the Solunar Theory, which he named for Sol (the Roman sun god), and Luna (the Roman goddess who personified the moon). Tides were already known to be an important factor in saltwater fishing success, and the connection between tides and moon phases was well recognized. Another piece of anecdotal information that was well known to Native Americans and other groups that depended on hunting and fishing for survival was that animals were more active during full and new moons.

It's still a commonly accepted fact among panfish anglers that redear and bluegill spawning activity occurs around the full and new moon phases during spring and summer and that is when the species are most vulnerable to anglers. Knight speculated that the relationship between the sun and moon, rather than tidal stages might provide a way to predict fishing success. The title of one of his books came from an interview with a market hunter, who was taught by his father that the best time to hunt and fish was moon up and moon down. As his research continued, he determined that midway between when the moon rose and set, and vice-versa, there were periods of fishing activity that represented the time of peak action. Knight coined the phrases 'major solunar periods and 'minor solunar periods to describe these activity cycles. These periods of greatest fish and wildlife activity last from 1.5 to 3 hours, depending on the moons relationship to the sun, distance from Earth and declination (angle from the equator). Knight used this information to publish the first Solunar Tables in 1936. However, we now know that to be accurate, the precise times from each table must consider the geographic location and also be adjusted for daylight savings time, when appropriate. Consequently, except those adapted to your local area, many generic calendars will not be sufficient to improve your chance of success. You can approximate these times by adding six hours to the rise and set times for the moon (see MyFWC.com/Fishing/Schedule/LunarCalculator.html for an online calculator for any date and location). New moons provide maximum impact, when the sun and moon are traveling in rhythm with their forces combined. During a full moon, they are opposite one another, with one or the other nearly always above the horizon, and they provide a strong secondary peak. Thereafter, the degree of intensity tapers off until it is at its minimum during the threequarter phase of the moon. Because of the interaction between the many aspects of the lunar and

solar cycles, no two days, months or years are identical. June has the greatest combined solunar influence. Other factors greatly affect the reliability of Solunar Tables. For instance, you should also consider local weather patterns. Fish and wildlife have an innate ability to predict weather and react accordingly. Barometric changes, especially a downward trend, often can turn fishing off. Conversely, there are times that a cold front moving into the area can seemingly make the fish go into a feeding frenzy to beat the bad weather. Typically, if the barometer is steady or rising and the air temperature is significantly (about 15 degrees) higher than the water temperature, a stronger response to the solunar periods is likely but again, immediately following a cold front, some fish are rather lethargic. Temperature is also associated with spawning times and can be a key factor in the seasonal patterns with which both marine freshwater fish are sought (MyFWC.com/fishing/schedule/seasonal-calendar.html). Research has shown that a natural day for fish and many other animal species is based on a diel (twice daily) biological clock that appears to coincide with lunar time. In other words, it is based on the time it takes the moon to complete one rotation of the earth (an average of 24 hours and 53 minutes). This is also called a tidal day and explains why ocean tides are about an hour later each day - and why most fish, freshwater species included, will feed up to an hour later (in relation to our solar clock) each day. Wildlife are typically classified as diurnal (daytime), nocturnal (nighttime) or crepuscular (most active at dawn and dusk), but regardless, sunrise and sunset play an important role in their movements and feeding behavior. So lets put it all together. Your odds are optimum if you go fishing six hours after the moon rises or sets, and that time coincides with sunrise during a new moon, while the barometer is rising, water levels are adequate, tides are at their strongest, water quality is good, there are

plenty of big hungry fish looking for food, and not too many big hungry mosquitoes doing the same thing youve got the optimum fishing time. Or if all this confuses you as much as it does me, then remember . . . the BEST time to go fishin' . . . is whenever you can safely! And . . . the more you fish, the better your odds. What could be simpler?

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Note: This article is derived from a variety of online sources including the Naval Observatory, solunar.com, primetimes.com and synsat.com.