Moonstruck

The author comes from a background of marine zoology and has taken an interest not only in circadian rhythms and chronobiology but now also in patterns of behaviour associated with the phases of the moon. After an initial chapter on moon myths and legends, he turns to scientific studies where some sea creatures appear to have internal clocks corresponding to driven tides, while others exhibit behaviour correlated with the intensity of moonlight. Interestingly, some more examples of moon-related rhythms have their origins in folklore. One example he gives is the behaviour of turtles, which some of us have seen emerging at full moon at Frenchman's Cove beach. This is an illustration of breeding behaviour correlated with the periodicity of the moon. In a chapter on the moon and the human condition, he comments that no menstrual cycles actually coincide with the true lunar month and that any correlations are likely to be due to chance rather than causality. The only reasonably validated area seems to be related to sleep patterns. The book documents an interesting emerging field.