While wading a bonefish flat, you've certainly noticed the cloud of muddy marl or fine sand you've kicked-up. But maybe you haven't noticed that the muck flows with the tide. It can flow to your right or left, blossom in front of you or quickly disappear behind you. Backtrack and you can see the debris has settled to the bottom revealing the stage of the tide you were on when you passed earlier. The debris flows towards deeper water on a falling tide and towards the mangroves on a rising tide.
Flushed debris can also reveal when bonefish feed on a flat. Bonefish make circular holes or "puffs" by blowing water into the sand to excavate prey species. The resulting debris drifts, then settles to one side or the other of the puff depending on the stage of the tide. This information can be used by an observant bonefisherman to make sure you are "at the right place at the right time" in the future.