Full Moon August 2024 – Sturgeon Moon And Alternative Names

Full Moon August 2024 - Sturgeon Moon.

The full Moon August 2024 is a fishy one indeed – the full “Sturgeon Moon.” Named for abundant fishing, particularly of lake sturgeon in late summer, the August Moon also has a variety of other names, each with connections to different cultures and the bounty of the season.

Full Moon August 2024: Monday, August 19
Peak Illumination: 2:26 p.m. Eastern Time

Full Moon Calendar

Why Is The August Full Moon The “Sturgeon” Moon

There are more than two dozen species of sturgeon in the world, but August’s “Sturgeon Moon” is related specifically to the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens), a North American freshwater fish that was once a critical food staple for many Native American tribes and settlers.

August sturgeon Moon.

These fish have been widespread in the Mississippi River Basin, particularly in the Detroit River as well as the Missouri River and St. Lawrence River. In late summer, especially August, lake sturgeon can be abundant and easy to catch, especially throughout the Great Lakes and in Lake Champlain on the border between New York and Vermont. Today, lake sturgeon are more rare than in centuries past, but the “Sturgeon Moon” association remains.

Alternative Names for the August Full Moon

Just as all monthly full Moons have a variety of different names according to different cultures and in different parts of the world, the Sturgeon Moon isn’t the only name for August’s full Moon.

Many native peoples have full Moon names associated with various crops, harvests, and growing seasons, as the full Moon can be an indication of when it is time to take advantage of that bounty. Some names are more general, such as the “Harvest Moon” used by the Dakota, which is also a widespread name for August’s full Moon in China. “Moon of the Ripening” from the Lakota tribe has a similar connotation, indicating ripening harvests.

“Grain Moon” is an Anglo-Saxon name for the full Moon in August, while the “Green Corn Moon” or simply “Corn Moon” is used by the Algonquin and Ojibwe tribes, as well as in many Medieval English records. (Please note that some indigenous groups call September’s Moon the “Green Corn Moon” when it is not designated as the “Harvest Moon.”) The Ponca tribe of the southern plains use a more specific name, “Corn Is in the Silk Moon.”

Of course, summer is a time of bountiful harvests of all types of crops, and many peoples and cultures acknowledge the bounty most common in their regions with their names for the August full Moon. The Sioux and Assiniboine tribes of the northern plains and into Canada call this Moon the “Black Cherries Moon” in reference to ripening chokecherries, while the Shawnee tribe of Ohio and Pennsylvania have named this Moon the “Plum Moon” for those delicious fruits. 

It isn’t just agricultural crops that can be abundant in August. In late summer, many waterfowl are molting as they prepare for their seasonal migration. When they shed feathers, these birds can be easier to hunt, and many native tribes also collected the feathers for cushioning, decorations, and other purposes. Thus, the August full Moon is called the “Feather Shedding Moon” by the Passamaquoddy tribe of the northeast, the “Geese Shedding Their Feathers Moon” by the Arapaho of the central plains, and the “Moon Young Ducks Begin to Fly” by the Cree of eastern and central Canada.

Not all full Moon names relate to plants, but may still connect to nature. In August, temperatures rise and streams and rivers can dry up, leading to the name “Dry Moon” by the Catawba of South Carolina, as well as the “Drying Up Moon” by the Cherokee in the central eastern United States. Similarly, the name “Hot Moon” from the Tunica tribe of Louisiana and the Shoshone tribe of Nevada and Wyoming references the season’s high temperatures.

The haze created by summer heat and dry conditions can lead to the illusion of a red hue to the full Moon in August, particularly when the Moon is seen in the early evening. “Red Moon” is a name used by many different cultures in many areas. Another late summer weather phenomenon is frequent lightning, and the name “Lightning Moon” for August’s full Moon is common in Europe and in Neo-Pagan traditions.

Thunder and lightning bolt safety tips.

Important Thunder And Lightning Safety Tips

Extreme northern cultures, however, have very different weather and harvest conditions. The Tlingit tribe of the Pacific Northwest and into Alaska call the August full Moon “Mountain Shadows Moon” in reference to the changing angle of the Earth and how it impacts the look of the rugged mountains in those regions.

Of course, the same differences apply to the extreme south, and many cultures in the Southern Hemisphere have very different names for the August full Moon. “Snow Moon” is a popular one, as is “Storm Moon.” “Hunger Moon” refers not to weather, but to the scarcity of food during August, in the midst of the Southern Hemisphere winter.

Whatever August represents to you – good fishing, harvesting food, fresh summer corn, thunderstorms, heavy heat, or even mid-winter, there is a full Moon name perfect for the eighth month of the year.

Join The Discussion

What is your favorite name for August’s full Moon?

If you could rename the Sturgeon Moon, what would you call it?

September’s Harvest Moon And Alternative Names

Full Moon Names And Times

Moon Phases Calendar

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Melissa Mayntz

Melissa Mayntz is a writer who specializes in birds and birding, though her work spans a wide range—from folklore to healthy living. Her first book, Migration: Exploring the Remarkable Journeys of Birds was published in 2020. Mayntz also writes for National Wildlife Magazine and The Spruce. Find her at MelissaMayntz.com.

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Hohmann Jeanne

Sturgeon season opens in Michigans Upper Peninsula usually the first Saturday after Lanor Day. A yearly trek from Florida to fish for the elusive Sturgeon. Needs to be 60” to keep. But we are Catch and Release folk!!

Gale Sinner

I like to make important decisions based on moon phases

Gale Sinner

Hello

sunset-4830904_960_720.jpg
Jenn

I have a question. New at this. Is there anyone that could tell me the best way to use a full moon to charge my crystals?

Positive Vibes

Sit them outside when the sun sets. Let the moon charge them. Get them the next morning around 9 or 10 am so that the sunlight can also hit them. I only charge mine by moonlight but there are several ways to charge them. Tomorrow is the full moon so get ready 🙂

Maria Crafton

I’ve 20 surgeries. Most with complications…My neighbor looked up the dates and time of my previous surgeries and told me in no uncertain terms I had done more than half of those on the wrong time of the moon. And I mean I’ve had complications that should’ve not even happened including problems with Dr. that saw no reason I should be dealing with those problems and acted as if I just wanted to complain, until I made them take my the cast of my leg, and it was literally rotting. Reason pain killers, shots wouldn’t help…

Gale Sinner

I agree, my surgeon wouldn’t listen to me when I told him June 4th 2022 was a bad day for my operation as it was a hive moon and my lymphatic system was extra sensitive why don’t they listen!

Laura Clayton

LoVe the Farmers Almanac. My husband & and I rely on it for our Garden & our other plants, our dog, canning, baking, etc…. ❤️ Thank you ❤️

Farmer Wayne

Hey everyone!

As a food farmer, I plant, harvest, cultivate, and tend to my crops using Farmers Almanac as much as possible. Having Great Results!
The rotation of the moon and stars plays in very heavily!
In drought, you plant with a robust moon, when wet, plant when the moon is small!

Geralinda Eden

My Grandmother swore by the Farmers Almanac that we de-horn cattle on a certain day and they wouldn’t bleed. Even attending Veterinarians thought she was kooky. None of the 50 head cattle bled on that day.

Kenneth Miller

I love reading the FARMERS’ALMANAC my mother in law got me started on following and reading the farmers almanac!She was a very smart lady and lived in Tennessee and grew up on a farm and they would follow when to plant and others things in the almanac and they swore by it!

homer

Full Sturgeon Moon! This is all something new to me.

Shane W. Sturgeon

I was born a Sturgeon on 14/01/1982 in Toronto, Ontario – CANADA. I came across this web site the other day & I am very interested in ” August’s Full Sturgeon Moon “. I only seen a Sturgeon Fish of when I was a young boys while visiting an aquarium in Southern Ontario. I would like very much to get more information on anything that has the Sturgeon name: Sturgeon Lake, Falls, Bay & Fish etc.. Thank You for all the information so far.
Shane W. Sturgeon
1006-3845 Sheppard Ave., E.
Scarborough, ON M1T3S8
CANADA
[email protected]

Woody Miller

I enjoy your site, very interesting, Thank You.

Susan Higgins

Thanks, Woody Miller!

Margaret Fleming

Thank you for the Info

PETE

awesome

Val

Great info. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

Charlene

You always have some fascinating, useful information for the readers. I will be outside Saturday night with my 5 yr old grandson telling him about the different names for this particular full moon and the reasons for those names. Hopefully, he will remember and pass it on some day. Thank you.

Josie

Great information. thank you

Brandon

This is great and of course so is the Farmer’s Almanac.
Thank you!

MARK

This was my first email from you…look forward to learning something like this as often as possible….I think a lot of people ( with small minds ) may not find this interesting…..I find it fascinating…it looks as though other so also…thank you

Pat LaVenture

People with small minds judge others without knowing them.

Sharon Baird

Love to read these things

eleanor

I enjoy hear fascinating bits of info… Keep it up!!!

Kenneth Scott Hughes

Love your info and site – time to start planning my fall/winter garden!

Ivana

I love everything you guys post every day I love to learn more about this beautiful country . Interesting information about this ” little sturgeon 15 foot long ” BEC I m a. Swimmer in opens waters LOL . Thanks for the tip . Thanks again from Mississauga .

Scott hebblethwaite

Learned something new again today thanks

RB

I would imagine if you go to sturgeon by on a sturgeon moon you might catch a 15 footer. 😉

Sharon

Sturgeon Bay, sturgeon moon. What do they have in common?

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