United States Department of the Interior. 
Fish and Wildlife oe 
a heh! a ae oa Wildlife Leaflet 256 
Chicage 54, Il. , 3 ee dune 1944 
ee ELECTRIC BEACONS USED 70 FRIGHTEN | WILD DUGKS 
~ ~~ -FROM GRAINFTELDS ms 
By Ralph H. Imler, Biologist, Wildlife Research anenacee 
Denver, Colo. 
i Bu, */KEWHRODUCSTON 
Wild ducks have greatly inerdaged in bombers during the past 10 years © 
and are destroying farm crops in certain localities. Corn and grain sor- 
ghums in the Platte River Valley in Colorado and Nebraska, and wheat and 
barley in the Dakotas are seriously damaged each fall. Injury to rice in 
California, Texas, and elsewhere has also occurred. 
Several frightening devices, including guns, scarecrows, flares, lights 
revolved by the wind, and different types of pyrotechnics have been used in 
attempts to keep wild ducks out of grainfields. All are helpful to some ex- 
tent, but a combination of several frightening methods is usually more effec-= 
tive than any one alone. 
Electric beacons have been used for frightening ducks in Skagit County, 
Wash. Robert N. Hart, State Game ‘Jarden of California, devised a rotary 
duck beacon ‘that proved: successful in frightening ducks from crops in the 
Imperial Valley. This béacon is compact and well built. A clockwork mecha- 
nism turns the current on and off intermittently, and while it is on, ae 
revolving light throws a steady beam over the field, 
The beacon used in the experiments described in this leaflet is similar 
to that referred to with the exception that the light flashes continually as ie 
it revolves, ‘The flashing light seems to be more effective (nen a BOSS. Bion 
beam. 
DESCRIPTION OF B¥ACON 
An automobile spotlight was used for this exverimental beacon (fig. 1)). 
An ordinary headlight is satisfactory if it is equipped with a clear glass 
eles 
ee 
