Who would have thought that a ball of rock 238,000 miles away would have such an impact on life on earth?
While it seems ridiculous, Earth’s moon has a dramatic impact on all living things. For fish, the full and new moon phases direct spawning efforts, and bluegills are not excluded. They will spawn around the moon peaks.
Guide T.C. Lloyd of Hartsville, S.C., starts fishing for crappie in the winter and spring, then transitions to bluegill on the Santee Cooper lakes during the summer. Moon phases are critical knowing when to trailer to the lake to find bedding fish.
“Bream are bedding from late May through August and sometimes into September,” Lloyd said. “While I prefer the full moons, I also will catch them on the new moons.”
Full and new moons occur every month and are separated by two weeks. Male bream will begin to build beds a few days before the moon peaks and will sit on the beds several days after females drop eggs on the day of the moon peak. Lloyd prefers to fish that day, but he will often schedule a few extra days in there too.
“As a rule of thumb, it can be good three days before and after. Sometimes it is better on front end, and other times it is better on the back end,” he said.
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