Effectiveness of hot sauce (R) and deer away (R) repellents for deterring elk browsing of aspen sprouts

In western North America, large concentrations of elk (Cervus elaphus) can have detrimental effects on aspen (Populus tremuloides) regeneration and cl one survival. In some situations, management intervention to protect aspen sprouts is needed. We conducted an experiment to evaluate the effectiveness of Hot Sauce Animal Repellent(R) (HS) and Deer Away(R) (DA) in deterring e lk from browsing aspen sprouts during summer. We examined the responses of elk browsing on aspen sprouts at 3 levels of HS (0.062%, 0.62%, 6.2%) and 1 level of DA at 2 time periods (2 and 5 weeks postapplication). High concen tration HS (6.2%) and DA were the most effective repellents; browsing on as pen sprouts was reduced by 45% with HS and 27% with DA compared to controls . Elk browsing on aspen sprouts decreased linearly (P < 0.001) with increas ed concentration of IIS. Levels of elk browsing on aspen sprouts were simil ar (P = 0.249) for repellent treatments applied 2 and 5 weeks prior to expo sure to elk. We conclude that HS (6.2%) and DA will provide protection of a spen sprouts from browsing by elk for at least 5 weeks during the growing s eason, but current economic costs limit the practicality of large-scale use of these repellents.