March’s full Worm Moon reaches peak illumination at 3:20 A.M. EDT on Friday, March 18, 2022.

March’s full Moon goes by the name Worm Moon. For many years, it was believed that this name referred to the earthworms that appear as the soil warms in spring. This invites birds to feed—a true sign of spring!

However, more research revealed another explanation. In the 1760s, Captain Jonathan Carver visited the Naudowessie (Dakota) and other Native American tribes and wrote that the name Worm Moon refers to a different sort of “worm”—beetle larvae—which begin to emerge from the thawing bark of trees and other winter hideouts at this time.