A Knock Out
Blogger: Forest & Bird’s Web Manager, Mandy Herrick
Three local product designers who created the world’s first multi-kill trap are now on the brink of unveiling a whole new suite to pest-killing devices.
Named after pioneering conservationist and kakapo lover, Richard Henry, the tree mounted trap delivers a blow to the head of stoats using a CO2 powered piston, and then re-sets itself.
Each trap is set with long-life meat. The trap works on the principle that other stoats will cache the trap’s victim, and then return to the site to see if there is more food.
Since the launch in September over 900 traps have been sold to community based conservation groups across the country.
One of the partners of the company Robbie Grieg say it has been particularly useful in hard-to-reach areas with few volunteers, such as Tongariro river where Blue Duck are known to reside.
After graduating from design school five years ago, Grieg followed a well trodden path into furniture design, then took an unusual foray into industrial design for the Department of Conservation.
He found himself creating gecko observation units and underground cameras, and then set himself the challenge of tackling DOC’s $100 million question – how to effectively get rid of pests?
The group were given a $250,000 innovation grant by DOC to answer this question and came up with Henry – a super-light trap (400g instead of 6kg) that could re-set itself.
Of course, the problem boiled down to maths. The trap he and his colleagues developed costs between $160 – $180 and re-sets itself 12 times. After this, the gas canister needs to be changed at a cost of $8
In contrast, a conventional ‘DOC 200’ trap checked twelve times a year costs $96.
The trap has been in development for the past two years to ensure there was no by-catch from kea and weka, however they are still in a testing phase to ensure the trap meets animal welfare guidelines.
If it is proven to meet these guidelines, Greig is confident it will be adopted by the Department of Conservation.
For now, his company is busy refining the trap and working on different iterations of it, so that it will work well on other nasties, such rats, possums, rabbits and ferrets.
Update: October, 2010. Here’s the latest video showing the effectiveness of the trap – it caught five possums over seven days.
