Hunters and non-hunters alike are familiar with bright orange coats, hats, vests, and other gear that is worn during hunting season. Even though it seems counterintuitive to wear “blaze orange” in the fields or woods for fear that animals may spot you, hunters need not worry so much.
Deer typically cannot recognize blaze orange attire designed to make hunters visible to other people. According to researchers at the University of Georgia, a combination of factors make deer less likely to be startled by blaze orange. Deer have less binocular overlap than humans. Binocular overlap (the area that both eyes view at the same time) allows focus on a single point and enables depth perception.
Deer must shift their heads much more than humans to gain a good three-dimensional perspective of an object. Deer also have fewer cones in their retinas compared to humans. Cones are photoreceptors that enable color vision and distinguish fine details.
Furthermore, deer cannot readily perceive longer wavelengths of color, so oranges and reds appear more like brown or gray to them. However, deer can see blue colors more easily, so hunters may want to avoid blue jeans paired with their orange gear.
Comments