# Solunar Theory



## GaryI (Mar 18, 2015)

I enjoy both fishing and astronomy, so incorporating the use of solunar theory into my fishing is a natural fit. If you are not familiar with it, it is a theory developed in 1926 by John Aldenn Knight and basically says that animal activity is primarily a function of moon position, and that you will have the best time catching fish when animal movement is at its highest. The major periods of movement are when the moon is directly above our head or on the opposite side of the earth. The minor periods, which are also good, are at moonrise and moonset. There are other factors as well, such as the phase of the moon. This theory influences all animal behavior, not just fish. I recall that the use of solunar tables was big in the 1970s, but I don't believe they are as popular anymore. Although I do see that there are many apps out there on the subject.

I have read quite a bit on the subject, and the problem I have with it is that the evidence to prove the theory appears to me to be very anecdotal. I am not convinced that any moon influence is nearly as important as barometric pressure, cloud cover, sun intensity, wind speed, wind direction, and time of year. But I know that many fisherman swear by these tables. I would think that the guides on this forum, fishing every day, would in time be best able to judge whether the tables have any merit. I realize that many of us simply fish when we can and don't have the "luxury" of conforming to a specific preferred time of day.

So, do you believe in this theory and do you use it to influence your fishing times?


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## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

I believe that the solunar theory holds merit, but is not the exact answer due to so many additional variables like you mention. We have all seen the fishing pick up or the bite stop. Usually when hunting, most deer move around about the same time, if you see one moving get prepared because you will probably see more. I admit that the reasons why these things occur fascinate me, and I am somewhat glad that we (in my opinion) will never know the exact answer. Why does barometer affect fishing when the fish can move up or down in the water column and change pressure much more than the effects of the barometer? Why does a north wind seem to usually kill fishing, but not always? Tide or water flow somewhat makes sense to me, but many variables do not.


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

The position of the moon creates/deters gravity on large bodies of water.

Tides are created when the moon's gravitational pull physically raises the water levels.

Moving water, from tides, turns fish feeding on.

Viola !!! Sol-Lunar works.

So....if all bays and coasts were affected the same, predicting fish activity would be easy.

Since we have five or more hours of delay from the coast to the interior of the bays ( and even more to the really back bays)..predicting becomes far more complicated. Add in wind-driven tides, wave action, and the usual imponderability of fish in general....it gets complicated.

regards, richg99

p.s. I look at the app.... Time2fish... all of the time. But, the best time to fish for me...is ....when I can.


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## SeaOx 230C (Aug 12, 2005)

How long will a fish go with out eating?


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## whsalum (Mar 4, 2013)

After years of tournament fishing I became a believer in solunar tables. I'm still not sure if it was the tables or me making sure I was on my best spots at those times that made the difference. It won't be near as much fun if we ever figure it out !!


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## Mr. Saltwater (Oct 5, 2012)

Absolutely believe in it.

Other factors such as weather and tides have an influence on game movement too.

I kept a log book of my hunting and fishing trips, and game camera pictures a few years ago and compared the times of activity to the solunar tables. Roughly 75% of the peak times I observed were dead on with the solunar table predictions. Good enough evidence for me to do all I can to be on the water or in the stand when the tables predict peak activity.


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## whsalum (Mar 4, 2013)

SeaOx 230C said:


> How long will a fish go with out eating?


 I think that has more to do with water temperature and metabolism than solunar tables. When water is warm and metabolism is up I think they will feed a couple of times a day. When the water is cold maybe only every couple of days. Now I have absolutely nothing to back this up scientifically. LOL


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## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

SeaOx 230C said:


> How long will a fish go with out eating?


This much I know for a fact:
If you catch a couple of good sized white bass and keep them alive and put them in an aquarium with feeder gold fish to eat, they still wait a few days before eating anything. Eventually though, they eat like crazy.


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## SeaOx 230C (Aug 12, 2005)

That's what I have always wondered. When the fish are not "biting" are they really not feeding at all for days. Or is it that what we are trying to get them to eat is not what they want or not presented in the right way?

I have casually looked at Solunar Tables but really don't have a good understanding of it. I always have said I need to keep a log and track that type of info to establish patterns of movement and feeding thru out the year. But its one of those things I have just never gotten around to starting.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

In my view, it isnâ€™t a â€œyesâ€ or â€œnoâ€ answerâ€¦it depends:

1) some fish/areas are affected far more than others

For example, the bluegill and bass in my ponds are much more affected by weather conditions and changes in same than they are the solunar factors. On freshwater lakes its much the same with weather changes especially barometric pressure far and away the more important factor.

Having said that, the big exception I would make to that is moon phase, and specifically the two or so days just before and after a full moon. Those days are absolutely terrific for bluegill fishing around here in warm months and conversely very slow times for daylight striper fishing everywhere I have been.

2) fishing technique matters...i.e. fishing with artificials/flies is much more affected by these factors than live bait/bait.

Fish feeding patterns change at certain times, such as the full moon phase mentioned above, and depending on the species you target, it may be wise to adjust your fishing style accordingly.

3) Use common sense in decision making.

If you are investing significant time/money/resources on a particular fishing trip, then details matter. If its a trip that you make every day or several times a week or frequently, don't worry about itâ€¦just go fishing.

In my own case, I won't let a full moon phase stop me from striper fishing on Livingston if that is what I want to doâ€¦.and certainly would not be imprisioned to a bad solunar table reading.

On the other hand, when targeting specific fish on those â€œonce in a lifetimeâ€ type special trips, then absolutely details matter. Iâ€™m working right now on a Giant Trevally (GT) tripâ€¦and the single most important factor in determining when to make the trip is tidal movement. Everything else, everything is secondary.

4) Use fishing logs.

You will learn far more by recording key information from each trip in a fishing logâ€¦.and referring to it laterâ€¦than you will ever get from a solunar â€œappâ€. There is no substitute for that historical dataâ€¦.and it can always be available when you need it.
If you are serious about fishing, particularly for specific species, a fishing log covering many years is worth its weight in gold...no, actually mine is worth more than the current price of gold, lol.


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## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

I do use the tables to make sure I'm over some fish I located earlier if there is a major or minor period coming up during the time I'm taking folks out. And not running from one spot to another.
That's not always possible as I fish mornings only.

If the fish are not biting well and I have located a school that would not bite I go back during the feeding times indicated by the table and try them again.
I have had it make the day a successful one many times.
So many other variables are at play concerning feeding times, like others have mention that relying on them only is not good idea.

Because you never know unless you go.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## saved (Feb 1, 2014)

When I was a lad my grandmother would not allow the girls into the garden when they were on their monthly. The teaching was it would cause the blooms to fall off the plants. hwell:

Solunar theory falls under the same category, a wives tale. If the Solunar theory worked, it would work period, but it does not. sad3sm 

The fact that someone might make catch during what is called high activity due to the Solunar is nothing more than a coincidence, but certainly not the sole result of Solunar.

I realize that here are those who swear by the Solunar that it works, but so did my grandmother swear by keeping the girls out of the garden when they were on their monthly.

The problem is IF the Solunar worked two people out on the water at the same time in the same area would booth have good catches and we all know that just anin't so.


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

Well, I respectively disagree (what's new?).

If you believe that the position of the moon causes the tide to rise (it does)...and you believe that fish feed better on moving water (they do)...then that is all that you have to know about Sol-Lunar theory. It properly reflects where the moon/sun is and the effects of those celestial positions.

Now, if someone wants to believe that he will always find a bonanza if he fishes when the tide is moving...... (someplace..not necessary where he is fishing) ......then he is attributing far too much to the simple Sol-Lunar theory.

Sol-Lunar (IMHO) is simply another tool to get you on the water, hopefully in the right place, at a time when conditions are more favorable than other times.

It is NOT the only thing that anyone should use. 

I can get a great Sol-Lunar time for Galveston, and find ZERO fish moving or feeding in upper Trinity bay. Heck, the properly predicted tide movement at the coast,..... takes five hours to get to upper Trinity. 

regards, richg99


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## bubbas kenner (Sep 4, 2010)

I have read every reply and once again learned from this site.Im one who goes when I can and mostly fish trinity bay.I know good and well I should have kept a log.Also I fish when I can and refuse to sit home and flip channels every trip on my boat has been a lesson self taught.Great post and awesome replies did the boys have to tend the garden,Interesting.


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## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

Rich, agreeing to disagree is a great thing about 2Cool. 
That the moon causes tides is a fact.
That moving water affects fish feeding is fact or close to it.
But most of your post pertains to salt water fishing, what about fresh water fishing, deer hunting, other things?
I think moving tide on the coast plays a larger percentage of the overall variables involved for catching trout or reds than the moon position on catching white bass in Lake Livingston.


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## shade (Aug 12, 2010)

There is a pretty good correlation with the tables and the cows standing up and eating or just laying down. We have caught fish several times that fit with the tables. Agree with not using them as your only tool


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## Whitebassfisher (May 4, 2007)

shade said:


> There is a pretty good correlation with the tables and the cows standing up and eating or just laying down.


Just in my mind, the cows would be a better indicator for deer hunting than man made tables because those cows are affected by all the variables.


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

Re Freshwater.... Read Shadslinger's post to find that answer.

The moon moves. Tides are affected.. (even tiny little lakes have "tides"). Fish react. 

Sometimes the movement helps us. That's all.

richg99


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

As far as a guy sitting in a room making up numbers...astronomy has been predicting where the moon will be..at any time in the future..for maybe a thousand years. 

No doubt that same "guy in a room" could easily tell us the high tide on my birthday at age 100 (not so far away).

Ha ha...great subject. Great debate.

regards. richg99


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## GaryI (Mar 18, 2015)

Thanks to all for your thoughts and posts, and especially that you presented them in a thoughtful and respectful manner. After spending too much time on Yahoo, ESPN and Facebook forums, I had given up the hope that one could have a worthwhile discussion on the internet.

I have the luxury of being retired AND living on the lake, plus I have been keeping a log anyway and I have download a free app, so I will give the solunar theory idea a chance. I also have some background in statistics and probability, and while I won't pretend that I am going to make a doctoral thesis out of this, I will try to be objective about my observations and conclusions and post some feedback over the next few months.


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## richg99 (Aug 21, 2004)

Gary....if you have a log, and could access Sol-Lunar tables for your area for the last year or so....it might be an interesting exercise to back-track/test your logged results with the "favorable times" portion of the tables.

richg99


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## fredg (Jan 1, 2010)

When I was (much) younger I researched solunar theory. I took the log approach and went fishing whenever I could find the time. I might log results from 20+ fresh water hours then check back to compare with the tables. I did find a meaningful correlation, but by no means did it approach 100%. Later in life I did some salt water fishing and repeatedly found tide to be king. Solunar predictions fell into the "oh by the way ..." category. Today, I fish when the urge hits, but have a fondness for sunrise and sunset. If that coincides with a predicted major or minor, it more often than not is a good time.


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