Managing gardens for wildlife: Features that predict mammal presence and abundance in gardens vary seasonally

Residential gardens in urban areas offer substantial opportunities for biodiversity conservation. To realize this opportunity, a comprehensive understanding of which species prosper gardens, mechanisms promote their use these green spaces and how can be manipulated by residents to achieve conservation outcomes, is needed. While progress has been made evaluating the that influence diversity, presence, abundance wildlife vary seasonally largely unknown. This study investigated whether garden features influencing presence and/or arboreal, flying, ground-dwelling mammals varied using acoustic, trapping, spotlighting surveys undertaken four consecutive seasons (2018/19) 52 southwestern Australia. As animal behavior resource availability varies seasonally, we predicted would also seasonally. For arboreal mammals, found some (e.g., canopy cover dogs, respectively) were important more than one season; however, none all with most only being influential one. No flying season. Our results suggest sampling single or few may fail identify at times other season sampling, alternatively, overemphasize factors do not operate across seasons. Studies consider on seasonal basis will provide list animals gardens. We it both those support multiple seasons, critical life-history events could contribute if appropriately.