The “Super Monster Wolf” robot looks like something out of dystopian science-fiction but it could revolutionise farming.

The robot costs around £3,480 (514,000 yen) and the Japan Agricultural Cooperative said significantly fewer crops have been lost under the robot’s protection.

It was deployed on a trial base near Kisarazu City in Japan's eastern Chiba prefecture last July.

Chihiko Umezawa of the agricultural cooperative told Chiba Nippo news the device can cover around one kilometre and suggested it is more effective than an electric fence.