The Waikawa Environment Group has pest control as one of its aims. We know that stoats and wild cats are two particular threats to local birds, and that rabbits, rats and mice also cause problems.
This item about smart traps that could perhaps be available by 2024 is interesting — Rodents beware: AI device being developed in NZ to kill invasive species | RNZ:
An Artificially Intelligent Terminator is in development here in Aotearoa, but it is not quite the same in the movies.
In a ground-breaking evolution in pest control, the new device uses AI to identify and kill an invasive species. …
It kills the furry ferals almost immediately while leaving native animals and domestic pets alone.
Project lead Dr Helen Blackie said the trap also automatically reset, and could last up to a year without being serviced. …
“It’s able to identify, at incredibly fast speeds, any species that comes up to it, and if it identifies that animal as being a pest species, then it activates the trap.
”If it identifies that animal as being, say, a native parrot, then it makes sure the trap stays de-activated." …
The device works by using artificial intelligence to scan the animal once it goes in for the bait.
Looking out for features like fur, and face shape, it designates whether it’s one of its targets - rats, stoats, and weasels.
Once it tells it is in the right place, it delivers blunt trauma force to the head, causing death almost instantaneously. …
Blackie … hoped the device would be available for commercial use in 2024.
