Are Urban Populations of a Gliding Mammal Vulnerable to Decline?

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Arboreal mammals provide important ecological services, but they are threatened by many anthropogenic activities, including habitat isolation and fragmentation. We investigated the population dynamics of the Australian squirrel glider in a small and larger reference population over a 16 year period. Population modelling suggests that a decline occurred in the small population but not the larger one. External factors are implicated in the decline and warrant further investigation. ABSTRACT: Small populations are at high risk of extinction, and they are likely to need management intervention. Successful management, however, relies on sufficient long-term demographic data in order to determine whether apparent declines are natural fluctuations or the product of threatening processes. In this study, we monitored a small urban population of squirrel gliders (Petaurus norfolcensis) in Queensland, Australia, over a 16 year period. A reference population in a larger forest patch was also studied in order to investigate whether its demographic trends were similar. Using mark-recapture data to generate estimates of apparent survival and population size, we found evidence of a decline within the small population but not in the reference population over the monitoring period. We suggest that the influence of multiple factors may have led to the decline, but, ultimately, that the genetic condition of the small population may be responsible. Understanding demographic trends is an important context for management interventions of small populations, although causes of decline need to be identified for successful management. The squirrel glider provides a useful case study for small urban populations and particularly for arboreal mammals.