Sam Gibson

Sam Gibson (1989 –), better known as Sam the Trap Man, is a conservationist, environmentalist, and ecologist dedicated to the protection and restoration of Aotearoa’s native bush, forests, and ecosystems. Sam was raised on the East Coast, where he acknowledges a variety of influences and inspirations that lead him to who he is today. Among them, he credits his mother as a role model and inspiration for community support and involvement, his grandmother for fostering a love and curiosity for Aotearoa’s natural world, and his uncles and mentor, Keith Tihema Beale, for encouraging him and teaching him how to trap, hunt, and read the environment in the Te Urewera forest.  

After achieving a Diploma of Environmental Management through Bay of Plenty Polytechnic in 2012, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Waikato in 2013, Sam spent several years as a Biodiversity Ranger for the Department of Conservation. Since then, he has spent the last decade as catchment coordinator and technical expert for public and private conservation companies and travelled across Aotearoa on many conservation projects.  

In 2017, following encouragement from his wife, Sam began creating educational content and videos as “Sam the Trap Man” on Instagram, where he shares wonders, facts, stories, and yarns about all things nature and trapping.  

In 2020, Sam co-founded Eastern Whio Link alongside friend and fellow trapper Geoff McLaughlan after noticing the rapid decline of whio in the Waioeka area. Eastern Whio Link unites hunters, farmers, and fishermen across the East Coast in their efforts to protect and restore the endangered population by trapping and removing predator pests along the Waioeka Gorge. Since 2020, the region has over gained over 140 new chicks when before they had just four breeding pairs. In 2021, Eastern Whio Link won the New Zealand BioHeritage Challenge Community Award for Biosecurity.  

In an educational and entertaining culmination of Sam’s work, experience, and expertise, he published his first non-fiction novel, Sam the Trap Man: Cracking yarns and tall tales from the bush in 2024 through Allen & Urwin NZ. Largely autobiographical, Sam the Trap Man shares yarns and anecdotes from his life, interwoven with humour, wisdom, and cultural and historical context meant to entertain, inspire, and educate. Sam the Trap Man hit the bestsellers list that same year and was longlisted for the BookHub Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction at the 2025 Ockham NZ Book Awards. Following the publication of Sam the Trap Man, Sam was named one of the top ten New Voices of Aotearoa by The Coalition for Books in 2025. 

Two years later, Sam would release his second book, A Bushman’s Book of Yarns (2026), once again through Allen & Urwin. A true successor to Sam the Trap Man, the best-selling book includes more yarns from his life along with a guide to edible native plants and trees. 

Sam’s creative pursuits do not end with his books. In 2025, he hosted and co-produced the short documentary film “Think Like a Forest” in partnership with Pure Advantage. “Think Like a Forest” is a film about the incredible, diverse native forests in Aotearoa and all their benefits. It is a call to action to protect and restore the land as part of Pure Advantage’s Recloaking Papatūānuku Proposal.  

Like his mother, Sam is dedicated to his community – both local and national. He regularly travels across New Zealand, setting up and assisting with a variety of conservation projects and delivering educational workshops and talks to communities and schools. This includes workshops and lectures delivered as part of the Writer’s in Schools programme through Read NZ Te Pou Muramura.  

In 2025, Sam entered the running for Gisborne District council and was elected as a General Ward Councillor that October. He states he was spurred to the running following the destruction wrought by Cyclone Hale and Gabrielle in the region in 2023. He intends to serve the community directly to improve the regions resilience against such disasters and implement innovations to protect the region in the future. 

Whether as bushman, environmental warrior, councillor, or father, Sam inspires Kiwis all over the country to leave Aotearoa better than we found it, ensuring a future full of natural wonders awaiting to be discovered and loved.