Marlborough inventor Merv Allen says he will discuss with the Department of Conservation uses for his electric "zapper", which kills possums but not native birds.
The Blenheim man's ZapTrap lures possums into a metal box with bait and then sends a lethal electric shock of 380 volts through the animal when its front and back legs touch electrodes.
The floor of the trap then opens, dropping the animal out, before resetting itself for the next victim.
The trap drew widespread interest at the Mystery Creek Fieldays.
It won a prototype prize at the farm expo last year, and this year a display of the trap took the prize for best site.
Mr Allen - a fur trader and hunter for 40 years - developed the trap over 12 years.
About the size of a small suitcase, it sits a metre off the ground and holds a jam bait to attract possums up a wooden plank.
To get the bait, the possum has to step on to a metal plate and lick the jam.
The battery-powered trap only "zaps" when there are two feet at each end of the metal panel. That allows birds to fly in for a jam treat without being harmed.
After tipping the possum on to the ground, the trap resets for another go.
It is powered by a seven amp per hour battery and can kill 80 possums before needing a recharge.
The department's South Marlborough area manager, Robin Blackmore, said any device that provided land owners and trappers with an opportunity to lower the possum population could benefit conservation control programmes and slow the spread of bovine TB.
- NZPA
nzherald.co.nz/environment
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