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Wildlife researchers at the University
of Georgia are conducting one of the first studies on the basic sensory capabilities
of white-tailed deer to learn how deer see, hear and perceive “deer deterrent” devices.
Funded through a grant from the Georgia Department of Transportation, the research
seeks more effective ways to minimize the hazard of deer-vehicle collisions
on the nation’s roadways.
Deer-vehicle collisions are on the rise in Georgia and across the nation.
Wildlife officials estimate there are 1.5 million deer-vehicle collisions nationwide
each year at a cost of some $1 billion in damages. Most states attempt to minimize
deer-vehicle collisions using various techniques. Many of these – deer
crossing signs, modified speed limits, highway lighting and driver awareness
programs – target motorists. But others – including roadside reflectors,
warning whistles, habitat alteration and hazing – are aimed at the deer,
and their effectiveness has proven highly variable in research trials.
“Most devices targeting motorists are effective only for a short time,” said
Robert J. Warren, UGA wildlife ecologist. “It’s easy for motorists
who routinely pass a deer crossing sign to become accustomed to the warning
and eventually ignore it. It isn’t until someone actually hits, or nearly
hits a deer, that he or she becomes aware of the real danger.”
The multipart study is being conducted UGA wildlife ecologists Warren and
Karl V. Miller and Berry College animal physiologist George Gallagher, along
with their graduate students. It also includes hearing and vision tests on
captive deer at UGA’s Deer Research Facility. There, scientists are evaluating
the animals’ ability to distinguish shapes, patterns and contours. They
are also trying to learn more about their hearing range, including how deer
localize the direction of sounds. Manufacturers of bumper-mounted deer whistles
claim they produce ultrasonic sounds in ranges that are audible to animals
but not humans. But preliminary hearing tests suggest that deer hear at frequencies
similar to humans.
Tests of roadside reflectors and bumper-mounted “deer whistles” have
also yielded little information about the response of free-ranging deer. Several
manufacturers claim that the red reflectors scare deer because they mimic the
red glow of predator eyes. But studies on the spectral mechanisms in white-tailed
deer eyes suggest that deer can’t detect the long wavelengths that humans
interpret as red.
“A deer eye works much differently than a human eye,” said Miller. “If
we can just get a basic understanding of a deer’s sense of sight, we
should be able to use the knowledge in developing effective roadside deterrents
from a deer’s point of view.
Maximizing
Research Opportunities
Achieving the top ranks of American research universities,
so critical to the future economic development of Georgia
and to the education of its students, will require an unprecedented
level of commitment from the University and the state of Georgia.
In order to reach that level, UGA will need to focus its current
and new resources on areas of (1) greatest strength; (2) greatest
external funding opportunity; and (3) greatest opportunity
for national distinction. These areas of strength with great
external funding opportunity are
• environmental sciences
• biosciences generally and genomics in particular
• the biomedical area
• technologically aided agricultural research and service
programs, such as digital imaging and diagnostics.
Those with greatest opportunity for additional national recognition
include history, public and international affairs, areas of
English such as humanities computing; art; and music, including
the digital music program.
Critical to the success of the research program at UGA is
the construction of badly needed research facilities in these
areas of institutional strength. The Center for Applied Genetic
Technologies, which includes transgenic research facilities
for cattle, poultry, swine, fish and most major crop plants,
is now fully operational. A new facility for the Complex Carbohydrate
Research Center is on schedule to open by the end of 2003.
Additionally, facilities such as a major hospital for Veterinary
Medicine; an addition to the College of Pharmacy, including
space to support biomedical initiatives in cooperation with
the Medical College of Georgia; and substantial new facilities
to support the life sciences, including the College of Environment
and Design, the Institute for Integrated Genomics and the
Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, will expand
UGA’s role in these crucial areas.
The research under way at the University of Georgia, across
a wide array of disciplines, enhances lives, spurs economic
development and advances knowledge.
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UGA
researchers are working with scientists at Berry College to learn more about
how deer perceive various deterrents meant to keep them off roads and highways.
