Coyotes can be scary, as anyone who has walked their dog in the woods can probably tell you. The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is hoping to capitalize on that by using robo-coyotes to deter other wildlife from its airfields.
ERDC and the Department of Agriculture’s National Wildlife Research Center have teamed up with wildlife biologists Stephen Hammond and Jacob Jung to develop robot coyotes that can scare birds and other wildlife away from airfields. After five years they’ve created the Coyote Rovers, made of four-wheeled Traxxas X-Maxx motorized cars topped with plastic coyotes.
The Coyote Rovers can reach top speeds of 20 mph and cost about $3,000 each. They have been successfully tested at multiple military airfields including Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida. The plan is to make them more autonomous and adaptable in the future with tech like programmed routes and self-charging capabilities. AI is definitely a possibility too, as the robots could use it to identify specific species of animal intruders in order to deploy the most effective deterrent tactics.
