The moon is important life. Really.

Low tide near Birch Bay, Washington, 2013

It turns out that the moon is important to life.  The obvious assist is with tides.  The moon exerts a pull on the Earth.  This pull, due to gravity, causes the movement of water on the oceans, to such an extent that tides on the Bay of Funday have a range of more than 50 feet.  That's 100 billion tons of water, twice every day, up and down a 150 mile channel.  Regular tides are far less than that of course, but the idea here is that the moon moves a lot of water.

High tide brings important nutrients and debris inland.  It also removes shoreline features through erosion which facilitates nutrient distribution and the rock cycle.  Low tide allows a great many organisms to feed on intertidal species.  The whole marine food web is greatly enhanced by tides.

Then there is the fact that the moon stabilizes the Earth to some extent.  The moon's gravity holds the Earth's tilt in its current plane of rotation.  This stability results in minimal wobbling and allows for the very predictable change in seasons in the southern and northern hemispheres.  The moon's presence has also slowed the rotation of the Earth, making days longer over the many millions of years it has been present.  

Finally, the moon's bright evening presence provides a certain amount of illumination for nocturnal behaviours of many organisms.  Many species, including coral and some fish, use the lunar cycle to coordinate their mating practices.  

If the moon were not present, life would likely still be present, but it would also likely look very different from what it does today.  Besides, who doesn't love the way a warm summer evening looks during a full moon?

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com