Comparison of spotlighting and trapping in population surveys of the squirrel glider

Population monitoring of arboreal mammals should be informed by estimates of detection probabilities from different methods. We employed trapping and spotlighting across 36 transects to detect the squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis). Repeat surveys were conducted over five sessions. We used multi-method occupancy to compare these methods. The probability of detection did not differ between one night of spotlighting (0.23 ± 0.04, mean ± s.e.), or one night of trapping (0.22 ± 0.03). Trapping continued for three nights, which led to the probability of detection rising to 0.41 ± 0.04. Spotlighting was only conducted once per session. These methods would require equivalent effort when conducted over three nights. Further investigation is required to compare this and other methods such as camera trapping and spotlighting with thermal cameras.