Famous for many things, the initial release of Star Wars in particular; the year 1977 was also the last time a full moon rose on Christmas Day. For those anglers who scored a leave pass to go fishing on Christmas evening, they were treated to some of the best fishing conditions of the year. All the better to work off that Christmas ham!

Reeling is counted as exercise right? If so, countless Christmas calories were burned all around Australia last night as the full moon spurred a feeding frenzy of aquatic critters to get off their couches and look for dinner. Reports from the evening are flowing thick and fast online, with mud crabs being the pick of the bunch in QLD, Kingfish on the bite in NSW, Murray Cod in VIC and Flathead in WA - but why does a full moon make for such good fishing conditions? Here's three of the major reasons why.

1: Lots of people think fishing on the full moon is awful! Don't believe the hype about full moon fishing. Some anglers will swear blind that 'fish don't bite on a bright night', but particular species love it, so do crabs! Take advantage of less crowded rivers, carparks and jetties on the full moon.

2: Crabs, Wahoo and Spaniards are particular active on the full moon. Something about the light on the water, the high tides and whatever their usual prey is, makes full moon fishing for these species particularly good!

3: River fishing is amazing, due to the higher than average tides and increased water flow up and down the estuary. With high tides comes increased food flow for the fish, so they're out and biting harder than normal in the leadup, during and after a full moon.

The great Doug Perrine once told a story regarding the full moon, and how the Tongan locals like to do it:

"What," he asked during a break between songs, during a Kava fueled night on a fishing trip "is the best moon to go fishing on?" "We like to go fishing on the night three days before the full moon, the night of the full moon, and the night three days after the full moon," one of the Tongan locals answered. "Ah, this three-day gap is important, is it?" (This he thought, was the big secret!) To which the Tongan man replied: "Oh, yes. That's how long it takes us to save up for the petrol!" If you missed out on dropping a line in this Christmas, don't worry! There'll be another full moon on Christmas Day in 2034…

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