Data for "The value of social media wildlife sightings for elusive species monitoring: A population assessment of servals in a South African urban nature reserve"

Citizen science data from social media platforms is an underutilised resource for wildlife research, especially in studying enigmatic species. This study evaluates the potential of such data to provide population and behavioural insights into an elusive species, the serval (<i>Leptailurus serval</i>), from Rietvlei Nature Reserve, an urban protected area in South Africa. We collected 153 visitor sightings of servals within the reserve from different online platforms spanning from June 2011 to August 2024, from which we identified 30 different individual servals, including three long-term residents. Analysis of these sightings revealed a stable serval population with evidence of reproduction within the reserve and migration through a permeable border fence. Behavioural information from the sightings, such as prey captured and habitat use, align with existing knowledge of serval ecology.