Deer-activated Bioacoustic Frightening Device Deters White-tailed Deer

Authors

Aaron M. Hildreth, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Scott E. Hygnstrom, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Kurt C. VerCauteren, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Date of this Version

Spring 2013

Document Type

Article

Citation

Human–Wildlife Interactions (Spring 2013) 7(1): article 11 

doi: 10.26077/12mz-1p38

Comments

United States government work. Public domain

Abstract

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) damage urban and suburban plantings, as well as crops and stored feed. We tested the efficacy of a frightening device that played pre-recorded distress calls of adult female white-tailed deer when activated by an infrared motion sensor for a period of 13 days. This deer-activated bioacoustic frightening device reduced deer entry into protected sites by 99% (δ = -558, P = 0.09) and bait consumption by 100% (δ = -75, P = 0.06). The frightening device that we evaluated demonstrated potential for reducing damage in disturbed environments and agricultural settings.