Thermal drone detection of cryptic arboreal snakes across rainforest and sclerophyll canopies in eastern Australia

Thermal drone technology is transforming wildlife monitoring, yet applications have focused almost exclusively on endothermic species. The capacity of thermal sensors to detect ectothermic reptiles in forest canopies remains largely untested. Here, we report multiple drone-based detections of arboreal snakes across three forest systems in eastern Australia: (1) tropical rainforest in the Wet Tropics of Queensland; (2) subtropical rainforest in northern New South Wales; and (3) sclerophyll forest in the south-east forests of NSW. Across all sites, a total of 20 detections of Morelia spilota (carpet pythons) and Dendrelaphis punctulatus (green tree snakes) were recorded. Detection success was strongly influenced by environmental conditions, while canopy occlusion and behavioural traits likely biased detections towards larger-bodied individuals. This study provides the first evidence that thermal drones can effectively detect arboreal snakes in forest canopies, demonstrating substantial potential for advancing our understanding of arboreal reptile ecology in structurally complex canopy environments and expanding the range of canopy-dwelling taxa identifiable using thermal drones.