[ST] Deer whistles

["Andrew F. Kay, Jr." <andy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I take issue with UConn's assertion that the testing of deer whistles is
something new.  Everyone who has done any research, and that includes a
lot of  bike and car magazines over the last 30 years, always has the
same conclusion:  they don't make much noise and if they did, so what.
If deer had the smarts to avoid them (whistles), they would similarly
react to engine/tire noises.  In fact, the deer don't know what they are
going do until they do it.  Be on the lookout and remember:  better to
hit the deer (or whatever) upright than crash under braking, upside-down
and sideways.

OK, mixtures primed?  Igniters charged?  Nozzles aimed?  Flame away,
believers.

Andrew F. Kay, Jr.
Riders of the Lost Empire, LC
www.lostempire.com
772 571 1064

Tue Nov 19 11:44:11 2002 Pacific Time

      Air-Fed Deer Whistles Found Ineffective at Scaring Deer From
Roadways
       STORRS, Conn., Nov. 19 (AScribe Newswire) -- Air-fed deer
whistles, those small plastic devices attached to car bumpers to scare
deer from roadways, are "acoustically ineffective". That is the finding
of a scientific study conducted by Peter Scheifele, an animal
bioacoustics and audiology expert at the University of Connecticut. 

       On highways and byways across North America, nearly 750,000
collisions occur each year between deer and vehicles. Manufacturers
promote deer whistles as "acoustic attention-getters", alleging deer
will react to the whistle by remaining still. 

       "There has been a lot of conjecture about whether the whistles
work or don't work, and we are one of the first independent groups to
scientifically test them," says Scheifele, director of bioacoustic
research at the National Undersea Research Center at the University of
Connecticut's Avery Point campus and researcher in the Department of
Animal Science. 

       He and his team tested six air-fed whistles in the laboratory and
in the field. The study's goal was to determine the actual frequencies
generated by the whistles and the intensity at which they are produced;
compare that data to the hearing abilities of deer; and then take the
animal's acoustic behavior into consideration. Following the directions
on each package, the team mounted the devices onto a car's front bumper.
Using a road closed to the public, they drove the car at speeds ranging
from 30 to 45 miles per hour while recording sound and data. 

       "We tested them strictly from an acoustical point of view,"
explains Scheifele. He found that the whistles typically produce a
signal either at a frequency of 3 kilohertz (kHz) or 12 kHz. Both, as it
turns out, are problematic. The hearing range of white-tailed deer, the
most common species in the U.S., is between 2 and 6 kHz, so the animal
is not capable of hearing the 12 kHz signal. Although deer may be
capable of hearing the 3 kHz signal, it is only 3 decibels louder than
the road noise created by the car, so the signal is buried. Scheifele
points out that the condition would worsen with additional traffic in
the area or if the wind was blowing. 

       Since completing the study, a new electronic whistle has been put
on the market. Although Scheifele has not had an opportunity to test it,
he has examined its advertising claims. He says the specs for the
electronic whistle are considerably different from those of the air-fed
devices, so "there is a possibility that the electronic whistle is more
effective than the air-fed devices." 

       But even if deer can hear the electronic signal, the UConn
scientist questions how one alerts rather than startles the animal. This
is where animal behavior comes into play. 

       "Think about the metaphor 'deer in the headlights'," says
Scheifele. "It is used to conjure up an image of someone who is confused
or frightened. When deer sense something unusual, we do not know for
sure how they are going to react." 

       Will they freeze in their tracks, run off, or charge towards the
sound? Their behavior is related to the "fight-or-flight response".
According to scientific literature on the subject, there is an amount of
space in which an animal feels safe; but once that boundary is violated,
the animal's reaction is unpredictable. Its response will depend on a
number of factors, including age, sex, type of enemy, and surroundings. 

       "All in all, the air-fed whistles do not make sense to me
acoustically," states Scheifele. He has written a paper on his findings
and submitted it to the Acoustical Society of America's Acoustics
Research Letters Online where it will shortly be under review. 

      -30- 

Andrew F. Kay, Jr.
Riders of the Lost Empire, LC
www.lostempire.com
772 571 1064


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