Characteristics and behaviour of brushtail possums initially moving into a depopulated area

Brushtail possums are controlled extensively in New Zealand because they are a livestock disease vector and have an impact on native biodiversity. Reinvasion of controlled areas and subsequent population recovery is a significant management problem but little attention has been paid to what influences the settlement of possums in depopulated areas. To address this gap we trapped possums out of an area of about 24 ha in native podocarp–hardwood forest and studied reinvasion and settlement in the central c. 14 ha over 22 months. Most new possums were young males, but adults were also trapped. Many of the new possums caught on the study site post‐depopulation did not settle there, most likely because they continued to disperse, but some may have returned to their ranges nearby or were residents with a very low probability of capture. This finding highlights the need for better information about the origins and settlement of possums in depopulated areas to improve management of population recovery and long‐term sustained control of possums.