Unfortunately, the lust for the buck has driven some obsessive hunters to break the law, hunting the animals out of season.  That caused some techie conservationists to do what any normal well-adjusted person would do -- make a mechanical, taxidermied deer to turn the tables on the hunters.

Taxidermist Brian Wolslegel, a member of a gang call Custom Robotic Wildlife, has done exactly that.  He has collected deer corpses, dried the pelts, and stretched the skins over polyurethane bodies, creating a host of deer decoys.  The frame has servomotors attached that actuate the head, tail, and limbs.  The electronics are hidden inside the beast's neck and legs -- not typical hunter targets -- and receive signals via remote control.

Mr. Wolslegel and his pals spend their free time hiding in the forest.  When they come across a hapless lawbreaking hunter, the hunter becomes the hunted.  On the hunt for the most dangerous game, one party controls the decoy and waits for the hunter to strike.  Another video tapes the hunter shooting the decoy.  And two others leap out from the woods and tackle the hunter(s) attempting to detain them until authorities can arrive.

Mr. Wolslegel and pals have nabbed multiple lawbreakers with their mix of creepy stuffed animals and high-tech.  And across the country many park officials are using decoys supplied by the team to conduct similar stings.  The punishments handed out by authorities include steep fines and jail time.

The group also uses coyotes, elk, antelope, and bears to catch hunters engaging in other types of poaching.  However, their main passion remains deer.  Next year Mr. Wolslegel plans to unleash a new model which has a CO₂ cartridge to let loose little puffs of steamy "breath".

Aside from poaching the poachers, the Wisconsin based club/business also sells a variety of stuffed automated decoys to law-abiding hunters, homeowners (looking to scare away animals), and anyone else who might have a long silenced latent urge to own a large taxidermied beast.