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The effectiveness of trapping stoats using different bait types, tunnel designs and trap positions was investigated during a stoat population irruption in the Eglinton Valley, Fiordland. Broken eggs were significantly more effective stoat baits than synthetic lures based on the anal sac secretions of mustelids. Tunnels with partially camouflaged traps were no more effective than those with wooden bases and visible traps, which are faster and easier to check in the field. More stoats were caught at the edges of our trapping grid. The method outlined significantly reduced the rate of predation on breeding yellowheads.