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Over-abundant populations of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) create agricultural and human health and safety issues. The increased economic damage associated with locally overabundant deer populations accentuates the need for efficient techniques to mitigate the losses. Although red lasers can be an efficient tool for reducing damage caused by birds, they are not effective for deer because deer cannot detect wavelengths in the red portion of the spectrum. NO research has been conducted to determine if lasers of lower wavelengths could function as frightening devices for deer. We evaluated a green laser (534 nm, 120 mW) and 2 models of blue lasers (473 nm, 5 mW and 15 mW) to determine their efficacy in dispersing deer at night. Deer were no more likely to flee during a green or blue laser encounter than during control encounters. The green and blue lasers we tested did not frighten deer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluates the effectiveness of two models of red laser for dispersing deer at night. Overview of deer-human conflicts; Characteristics of the eye of a deer; Reason for the differential response of birds and deer to laser light.