Dataset of forb composition in a Pacific Northwest Bunchgrass Prairie

The following text describes the data included within the uploaded data file:

File S1:  SpeciesMatrix.xlsx

Worksheet 1 – "SpeciesList" contains 120 rows by 4 columns.  Column 1, Spp. Code is the USDA PlantDatabase (https://plant.sc.egov.usda.gov/java/) species symbol; Column 2, Spp. Name, is the species name; Column 3, Life Form, contains species life forms, i.e., AF = Annual forb, AG = Annual grass, PF = Perennial forb, PG = Perennial graminoid (grass, rush, sedge); Column 4, Nativity, indicates whether the species is native or non-native to the contiguous United States of America (https://plant.sc.egov.usda.gov/java/).

Worksheet 2 – "SpeciesMatrix" contains NPF abundances for the three sample periods (April, May, July 2016) and perennial bunchgrass and non-native annual grass abundances in July 2016.  Rows are sample units, columns are species, and each cell contains abundance (percentage of quadrats, out of 12 total, occupied by that species in that sample unit) values. 

Worksheet 3 – "EnvironmentalMatrix" contains (30 rows by 26 columns) environmental and biotic variables by sample unit.  "Plot" = sample unit, SlopePer = Percent slope, AspFolNW = Aspect folded about the NE-SW line, AVG_Dept(cm) = average soil depth to restrictive layer in cm, P = soil Phosphorous concentration, K = soil Potassium concentration, Mg = soil Magnesium concentration, Clay = Percent clay in the soil, Bcrust(%) = average plot-level percent cover of biotic crust, Bground (%) = average plot-level cover of bare ground, Rock (%) = average plot-level cover of rock, Total.Veg = average cover of total vegetation cover, Geophyte = relative abundance of geophytes compared to all native perennial forb abundance, Taproot = relative abundance of tap-rooted perennial forbs, Rhizomatous = relative abundance of rhizomatous perennial forbs, Fibrous = relative abundance of fibrous rooted forbs, Veg_Group = vegetation group identified using Cluster Analysis, NPFCoverApril = average plot-level native perennial forb cover in April, NPFCoverMay = average plot-level native perennial forb cover in May,  NPFCoverJuly = average plot-level native perennial forb cover in July, NPFRich_April = average plot-level native perennial forb richness in April, NPFRich_May = average plot-level native perennial forb richness in May,  NPFRich_July = average plot-level native perennial forb richness in July.  Flowers_April; _May; _July contains average plot-level native perennial forb flower counts for April, May, and July respectively.

Worksheet 4 – "FirstFoodDensity" contains 296 rows (quadrats) by 6 columns.  Columns include Plot ID, quadrat ID (quadrats not included did not contain the species of interest in any of the three sampling periods), species (Camas quamash and Lomatium cous), plant densities during April, May, and July respectively.

Worksheet 5 – "VegSamplingDates" contains 2575 rows by 3 columns.  Columns are sampling dates (month and day of the year), plot type (EcoPlot – sampling dates contained in the Northeast Oregon Ecology Program database dates range from May 11, 1976 to June 21, 2016; Starkey – vegetation sampling dates from Starkey Experimental Forest and Range, dates range from June 5, 1952 to October 24, 2005), and elevation (EcoPlot dates give elevation, Starkey dates have no exact elevation recorded but are located between 1120-1500 m).   

Funding provided by: USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: 05-JV-11261967-069